CEBU, Philippines - They started their voyage by ship but unexpectedly ended it by bus. This was how around 300 Cebu-bound passengers of the 465 passengers of the M/V Georich got here after being stranded for hours off Apo Island.
M/V Georich left Dapitan City at 4:15 p.m. on Saturday, it was on its way to Cebu but scheduled for a stopover in Dumaguete.
About two hours into the voyage, the vessel reportedly experienced a malfunction in its main engine prompting ship engineers and crew to stop the vessel and inspect what was causing the trouble.
George and Peter Lines port captain Gerry Enjambre said it was determined that some parts of the engine were damaged and beyond repair.
The ship, commanded by Capt. Roland Villarin, immediately reported the incident to the nearest Coast Guard station who also immediately radioed nearby vessels to tow M/V Georich to the Dumaguete port.
All passengers were safely transported to their respective destinations.
The ship was scheduled to arrive in Dumaguete at 8 p.m. but the incident delayed them by seven hours. Towed by M/V Filipinas Iloilo, M/V Georich finally reached Dumaguete at 2 a.m. yesterday.
There were a total of 465 passengers aboard the ship, 35 of them were children.
About a third of them were bound for Dumaguete and ended their journey right away while the rest had to ride the buses commissioned by GP Lines to take them to Cebu, a trip that included a ferry ride.
All seven buses arrived at the Cebu South Bus Terminal by noon yesterday.
While the passengers were safe, many of them reported being afraid and traumatized while being stranded in the middle of the sea in the darkness of the night.
Angered passengers filed a protest and demanded that M/V Georich cease operations for putting the lives of all the passengers onboard at risk.
Neil Antiquina, who was with his entire family aboard the ship, organized a signature campaign demanding the Maritime Industry Authority and the Philippine Coast Guard as well as the management of GP Lines to prevent M/V Georich from operating until authorities can prove that it can serve its purpose to safely transport passengers.
Antiquina and the other 130 signatories complained that the captain and crew failed to do their job in making sure that vessels are well functional and safe to sail.
Antiquina also said that they were not fed properly that night.
“They only served us crackers for dinner which is not even a hot meal,” he added. He also accused the captain for being unprofessional.
“If you feel responsible and accountable for the situation, he would have communicated with us and exercised his leadership. They did not even tell us what was going until after 40 long minutes.”
GP Lines refunded the passengers of the cost of their trip from Dumaguete to Cebu. Enjambre said that it was an accident and assured the public that they will continue to provide public service while making sure such an incident will not happen again. — Jessica Ann R. Pareja/BRP (THE FREEMAN)