By Ephraim Aguilar
Inquirer Southern Luzon
and Alcuin Papa, A6
INQUIRER.net
STRONG WINDS AND HEAVY RAINS brought by Tropical Depression “Quinta” prompted authorities to suspend retrieval operations of nine more missing passengers of the MB Don Dexter Cathlyn.
The death toll stood at 42 while there were 101 survivors as of Thursday afternoon, according to the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) in Bicol.
The motorized boat was on its way from Dimasalang, Masbate, to Bulan, Sorsogon, on Tuesday afternoon, when it was struck by a sudden squall, which caused it to overturn and toss its passengers into the sea.
Transportation Undersecretary Elena Bautista visited Dimasalang town with PCG officials to start the preliminary investigation of the sea tragedy.
Bautista questioned the boat owner about the cause of the tragedy.
A special Board of Marine Inquiry will determine whether force majeure or human error caused the sinking, and look into reports that the boat was overloaded when it left Dimasalang, Masbate.
Commodore Cecil Chen will head the special Board of Marine Inquiry, according to PCG spokesperson Capt. Enrico Evangelista.
Senior Supt. Reuben Sindac, Masbate police director, earlier said 119 passengers were officially recorded. But a list sent to the Inquirer by Capt. Henry Caballero of PCG-Bicol showed there were 42 dead, nine missing and 100 survivors, for a total of 151.
Due to bad weather, President Macapagal-Arroyo’s scheduled visit to Dimasalang town on Thursday afternoon was canceled.
From the Local Peace and Security Assembly (LPSA) in Clark Zone, Pampanga, Ms Arroyo was expected to arrive in Dimasalang town to console victims of the tragedy and give them financial aid.
Raffy Alejandro, civil defense director in Bicol, said the retrieval operations were called off after Masbate province was placed under Storm Signal No. 1.
Signal No. 1 was also raised over Mindoro island, the northern part of Palawan, Romblon, Camiguin, Biliran Island, Western Samar, Leyte, Southern Leyte, Bohol, Cebu, Negros Oriental, Negros Occidental, Iloilo, Aklan, Capiz, Antique, and Guimaras Island.
The rest of the country will be partly cloudy to cloudy with isolated rain showers.
Quinta is expected to bring gloomy weather to Metro Manila with high chances of rain in the coming days, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said yesterday.
Lots of rain
“It is a weak typhoon but the weak ones bring lots of rain,” Nathaniel Cruz, Pagasa weather bureau chief, told the Inquirer.
Rains could become widespread over the eastern section of the country and may cause flash floods and landslides.
Quinta started as a low pressure area affecting Mindanao but developed into a tropical depression as it moved toward the Visayas, according to Cruz.
Cruz said the storm was moving toward Central Visayas as it was spotted 40 kilometers northeast of Mactan, Cebu. It was packing maximum sustained winds of 45 kph near the center.
Quinta is forecast to move northwestward at 19 kph. It is expected to move toward northern Palawan before it exits the South China Sea.
Cuyo Island
By Friday morning, Quinta is predicted to be 80 km north of Cuyo Island or 90 km South of San Jose, Occidental Mindoro.
It is expected to be 440 km west of San Jose, Occidental Mindoro, by Saturday morning and 830 km west of Metro Manila by Sunday afternoon.
Because of the storm, two ships of the Philippine Navy were withdrawn from the vicinity of the capsized boat off the coast of Masbate, said Lt. Junior Grade German Acido, Naval Forces Southern Luzon spokesperson.
Authorities prohibited sea vessels from sailing to and from Masbate island.
Stranded
At least 126 passengers, 15 motorized boats, seven sea vessels, six trucks, and four cars were stranded in the ports of Masbate City and Pilar, Sorsogon.
Alejandro said families of the victims of the sea tragedy already received P3,000-burial assistance from the Department of Social Welfare and Development and P5,000 from the Masbate provincial government.
This does not include the financial assistance to be given by the President.
Registered owner
Alejandro said survivors of the tragedy complained against the boat owner’s nonchalance. Quoting the irate victims, Alejandro said the boat owner’s office was closed prompting police to search for her.
Documents from the Maritime Industry Authority showed the Don Dexter Cathlyn was registered to a certain Amiel Tamayo but a certain Gennie Zuñiga was reported as its owner.
The Inquirer tried to call Gennie Zuñiga but a woman who picked up the call said she was not there.
Princess of the Stars
In Sibuyan, Harbor Star, the private salvor recovering bodies inside the MV Princess of the Stars, suspended the retrieval operation yesterday.
In a statement, the company said divers managed to recover three bodies from Deck B, putting the total retrieved cadavers at 166.
Due to the bad weather, the tugs and the barge that are being used in the retrieval operation sailed from Sibuyan Island to Romblon for shelter, the company said.
Harbor Star is expected to wrap up the retrieval operations this weekend. It will then transfer the bodies to Cebu City, where the National Bureau of Investigation will process DNA samples to identify the victims.
The Princess of the Stars, which is owned by Sulpicio Lines, capsized in Sibuyan Sea in June when it sailed into the eye of Typhoon “Frank.” Only 57 out of the 850 passengers survived the tragedy. With a report from Kristine L. Alave
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