PCG to seek Japan’s help on damaged corals

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) plans to seek the assistance of the embassy of Japan to get in touch with the Japanese who took the video of the corals reportedly damaged by the yellow submarine in Cebu last month.

PCG Central Visayas District commander Commodore William Melad yesterday said that the agency “will exhaust (all) possible options,” including seeking the help of the Japanese embassy in finding Japanese diver Satoshi Toyoda who uploaded the video of the crushed corals on YouTube last April 26.

Last April 18, the yellow submarine allegedly hit corals at the famous dive site Kontiki Drop in Lapu Lapu City, Cebu.

Melad said that to his knowledge, Toyoda has not submitted a formal statement regarding the incident.  It is also uncertain if Toyoda will show up in the May 22 hearing to be conducted by the Marina Industry Authority (Marina) in Cebu.

“We would try to talk with the one who took the video but the problem is he is already back in Japan. It is his word, the video that was uploaded on YouTube…We need him to testify that that thing happened,” Melad said.

The PCG will also take the testimony of Cebu Yellow Submarine and Undersea Tours Corp., the operator of the underwater seacraft. The company earlier issued a statement denying the incident took place.

Melad said that the PCG also wants to get hold of the records of the submarine and interview its captain.

On Friday morning, Special Operations Group (SOG) divers took a video of the cluster of corals that was allegedly damaged by the yellow submarine.

But Melad, who flew to Manila to attend the retirement ceremony for PCG Vice Commandant for Administration Rear Admiral Lino Dabi, said he will watch the video when he returns to Cebu on May 7.

“From the video we might be able to see the specific location and assess if the corals were truly damaged,” Melad added. “But this is still subject to contention since the operator of the yellow submarine said there was no ‘alleged hitting’ of the corals. So the investigation is still ongoing.”

When asked if the corals in the area were healthy, the PCG official said he will leave it up to the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) to determine the condition of the corals.

“I am not competent in the classification of corals although I have seen it, some were grayish,” Melad said.

He also noted that even if the PCG has stepped into the probe, Marina remains the lead agency in the investigation since it was the one that issued the franchise for the operation of the underwater vessel.

The operations of the yellow submarine, he added, were temporarily stopped after the local government suspended its business permit, while the one-month franchise issued by the Marina expired last April 26.

The PCG, which conducts pre-departure inspection of domestic-bound vessels, said it would not allow the yellow submarine to operate again until the matter is settled.