Passengers feared trapped in vessel

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) has no deep-sea diving equipment to retrieve the remains of passengers possibly trapped inside a ferry that sank off Cavite after colliding with a fishing vessel on Christmas Eve.

PCG commandant Admiral Wilfredo Tamayo admitted his men do not have the capability to extract the remains of trapped passengers, if there were any, from the sunken M/V Catalyn B.

This developed as the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) suspended yesterday the franchises of the operators of Catalyn and of the other vessel that figured in the Christmas Eve mishap.

The suspension was apparently in compliance with President Arroyo’s order given earlier yesterday.

The wooden-hulled ferry Catalyn was on its way to Lubang Island in Mindoro when it rammed into the steel-hulled fishing vessel F/V Anatalia off Cavite near Limbones Island before dawn Thursday, causing it to sink.

The Catalyn B is reportedly 228 feet underwater. Coast Guard divers can only make it to 120 to 150 feet.

Tamayo said deep-sea diving requires thermal imager and underwater communication equipment. “The PCG is in the process of developing its deep-sea diving capabilities,” he said.

“We started considering acquiring these equipment right after the capsizing of the M/V Princess of the Stars,” he said.

Tamayo said they sought the help of salvage firms Malayan Towage, Harbor Star and C.V. Gaspar Salvage and Lighterage Corp. but got no favorable response.

“Both Malayan and Gaspar said they have no capability. Harbor Star, on the other hand, said that if they would take on the job, they would have to hire an outside company but this could be too costly for the shipping line,” he said.

“If they cannot do it, how can you expect the same from us considering that we are still developing our deep-sea diving capability?” he asked.

The PCG would be coordinating with shipowner San Nicholas Shipping Lines to discuss possible salvage operations.

The other fishing vessel’s operator is FilMarine Aquaventures.

When asked about the likelihood of dead bodies trapped inside the 79-ton passenger vessel, the PCG chief said, “It is one of the possibilities.”

“There were still debris, slippers, toys found floating on the water, but there were no bodies. We have already widened our search but negative on the bodies,” he said.

As of yesterday afternoon, there were three confirmed dead, 24 missing and 46 survivors. The three fatalities were identified as Beverly Cabinillo, 36; Relly Morales, 71; and Welmar Tanayan, 27.

Tanayan’s aunt, 49-year-old Jeanette de Gracia, went to the PCG late Thursday to claim her nephew’s remains. She said Tanayan was an architect and a good son who had sent his siblings to school.

“He was very excited to return home to the province because he wanted to give his money of about P40,000, his monthly salary and bonus, to his parents who are both farmers. This was the first time that he earned that big amount,” De Gracia added.

Suspended since Thursday

Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) Undersecretary for Maritime Transport Thompson Lantion said the 11 fishing vessels of FilMarine Aquaventures have been suspended since Thursday or shortly after the accident. Catalyn B was the last operational vessel of San Nicholas Shipping. Its sister ship Catalyn A had been damaged by fire.

“We have also suspended the safety certificates of the fishing boats. We have also suspended the seaman’s books of M/V Catalyn B,” Marina deputy administrator for operations Primo Rivera said.

“We would also coordinate with the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources since the fishing boats are licensed by the BFAR. It is the Marina that inspects the seaworthiness,” Rivera added.

He added that the maximum period of suspension is 60 days.

Rivera said they started the five-year period for the phaseout of wooden-hulled vessels only this year and it would be completed by 2014.

Initial reports also revealed that Tony Faminia, the captain of Catalyn B, did not graduate from any marine transport course but had obtained a license from the Professional Regulation Commission to ply domestic routes. There are no details yet on the background of Rogelo Librel, captain of Anatalia.

The Anatalia just came from a fishing trip in Palawan when the accident struck. It was carrying a large quantity of fish.

It is being held at Pier 13 at the South Harbor in Manila City and the ship owner would have to apply for special permit in order to unload its catch.

Bleaker

Tamayo said hopes of finding survivors were getting dimmer.

He said the lack of success in PCG’s search operation was “a cause of concern.”

“But it would not stop our search and rescue operations. Normally we would give 10 days for search and rescue before we call off our operations,” he said.

Earlier at Malacañang, Press Secretary Serge Remonde said the suspension of the shipping firms would allow an investigation to go unhampered and enable authorities to check on the seaworthiness of the other boats as well as the qualifications of personnel of the two ship operators.

“She (Mrs. Arroyo) has directed the Philippine Coast Guard and Marina to get to the bottom of it. It is tragic that the tragedy happened on Christmas Eve,” Press Secretary Cerge Remonde said.

“Appropriate assistance will be given” to the victims, he said.

Lantion, meanwhile, noted that since the weather was fine at the time of the tragedy, human error appeared to be the culprit.

“There was good weather that day so we’re thinking there could have been human error on the part of the captains,” he said.

Businessman and senatorial aspirant Joey de Venecia III blamed lax implementation of safety rules for the frequent sea mishaps in the country.

De Venecia also took a swipe at Mrs. Arroyo for “taking a vacation in Hong Kong when she should be performing her job as president of the Philippines.”

He said he expected Mrs. Arroyo to “shed crocodile tears and extend her condolences to the victims of the Manila Bay tragedy.” He also said the Coast Guard was not entirely to blame for the mishap since “the entire government bureaucracy takes its lead from the top.”

Search for missing widened

Meanwhile, the Philippine Navy has widened its search for the missing in the Christmas Eve tragedy.

Lt. Col. Edgard Arevalo, Navy spokesman, said two aircraft and four vessels involved in the search have scoured islets within a 20 nautical mile radius from the site of the collision.

“We took advantage of the good sea condition in the area to resume our search and rescue operations for the passengers,” he said.

“There is no gale warning in Cavite. The search and rescue operations will be safe,” said Prisco Nilo, administrator of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa).

The Navy spokesman said search and rescue units went as far as Fortune Island in Batangas to look for the missing.

He said the Navy’s Islander planes, patrol gunboats and rigid hull inflatable boats resumed their search yesterday after suspending their operations at nightfall Thursday. - With Paolo Romero, James Mananghaya, Evelyn Macairan, Nestor Etolle, Rainier Allan Ronda, Marvin Sy and Helen Flores