BY ADRIAN STEWART CO and RUBY SILUBRICO
ILOILO City – Two passenger boats already capsized in the rough Iloilo Strait earlier on Saturday but why was a third one still allowed to proceed on its journey? It, too, capsized. The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) central office’s maritime investigators are here to probe the successive sinking.
“Ang priority po natin ay matapos ang search and rescue at ma-account ang mga pasahero. After that, makapagsimula na tayong mag-imbestiga,” said PCG spokesperson Armand Balilo in Manila.
As of 4:34 p.m. yesterday, the Iloilo City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office said the number of casualties rose to 28 after one more cadaver was found in the waters of Jordan, Guimaras. Six remained missing. There were 52 survivors.
President Rodrigo Duterte may visit the victims.
“Given the character and style of the President, that’s a probability,” Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said in a Palace briefing yesterday.
There would be a review of protocols “kung may mga lapses” and if “kailangang baguhin para ma-improve ang ating serbisyo at hindi na maulit ang nangyari,” said Balilo.
The investigators are from PCG’s Maritime Casualty Investigation Division.
Whoever is responsible for securing the folks during storms “should exercise more prudence, caution, and should give the people more guidelines relative to facing this kind of disasters,” stressed Panelo in Malacañang.
The Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) is conducting parallel investigation, too.
Commodore Allan Dela Vega, PCG district commander for Western Visayas, confirmed that he and other local coastguard officials on duty when the incident happened would be investigated.
“I am included for command responsibility,” he said yesterday.
Dela Vega did not discount the possibility that some local coastguard officials would be sacked.
Marino party-list said the investigation must be thorough and impartial.
“Two passenger boats already capsized but the third one was allowed to proceed on its journey and also sank. I want to know where the problem lies. Are the protocols in place insufficient? Are boat captains not given enough information?” asked Cong. Sandro Gonzalez.
Past noon on Saturday, M/B Chi Chi and M/B Keshia, both bound for Guimaras from Iloilo City, were hit by a squall or a sudden gust of violent winds and rain. They capsized.
At around 4 p.m. Iloilo City-bound M/B Jenny Vince from Guimaras was hit by another squall and also capsized.
The three boats had a total of 86 passengers but only 75 were recorded in their manifestos.
From an objective study of the “mistakes made in letting these boats sail”, Gonzalez said, “We will learn how to prevent further loss of lives.”
In Malacañang, Panelo expressed the Palace “expresses its sincerest condolences to the families, relatives and friends of the people who died.”
He also said the Office of the President directed all concerned departments and agencies, including the Philippine Coast Guard, the Maritime Industry Authority and the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, to provide immediate assistance to the victims.
The concerned agencies were also tasked to refine their coordination efforts in safeguarding the security of the public especially during this rainy season, Panelo added.
This tragedy highlighted the urgency of modernizing the country’s maritime practices, said Marino party-list’s Gonzalez.
“The party-list, as the representative of seafarers, has a vested interest in the overall health and well-being of the maritime industry on which our constituents depend. It is the reason why we are currently finalizing the draft of a maritime modernization bill which I hope would solve the problems besetting the industry as a whole,” added Gonzalez./PN
Filipinos should not be pointing fingers to whom that responsibility would fall, i often travel in some parts of Philippines with a motorised bangka, I am familiar with some protocol of PCG. If there’s is no gail warning no storm signal provided by any authority concerned to PCG, trips were on go. Its up also to the boat’s captain if he feels like the boat’s capability/condition coudnt handle the weather. And also with passengers to wear lifejacket at all times even the weather is good. Base through my experience, most remove thier lifejacket after an inspection by PCG and when the vessel is already a bit far from from the shore. So, even the boat will capsize, they’ll still be floating with the jacket on them. Everyone is concern us responsible for anybody’s safety.
I may suggest that the goverment should provide more weather detecting apparatus to have more accurate monitoring in a very local weather condition so that PCG have more accurate data to follow. There’s should be a penalty to the passengers/boat crew/everyone onboard a motorized bangka in not wearing a lifejacket while at sea.