N. Harbor station chief relieved

MANILA, Philippines – Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) chief Vice Admiral Wilfredo Tamayo yesterday ordered the relief of the station commander assigned to the North Harbor in Manila in connection with the ongoing investigation of the Board of Marine Inquiry (BMI).

PCG spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Armand Balilo said Commander Erwin Balagas was relieved because “he was the commanding officer at the North Harbor station when the ship M/V Princess of the Stars departed on the evening of June 20. This is standard operating procedure (SOP).”

Balagas’ relief is effective while the BMI investigation is going on. In fact, he was one of those summoned to appear before the BMI.

The three other members of the boarding team were also relieved.

As of 5 p.m. yesterday, Balilo said their statistics were still pegged at 48 survivors and 85 dead, including the 18 dead bodies seen floating inside the vessel.

“It would take a miracle if there are still people alive inside the ship,” he said.

The PCG received information that the United States Navy, along with the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP), retrieved 87 bodies in Burias Island in Camarines Sur.

A command center, in coordination with the local government unit, was also formed in Pasacao by the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC). Undersecretary for Maritime Affairs Elena Bautista has been tapped to lead the Task Force Princess of the Stars.

The owner of the ill-fated vessel, Sulpicio Lines Inc. (SLI), will shoulder the embalming and transportation of the cadavers to either Cebu or Manila.

Tamayo ordered the intensified search and rescue and retrieval operations. Ten more PCG divers would be added to the 30 already undertaking the operation. The US navy has contributed 10 divers.

They would also send out cadaver bags and medicine to the area.

Balilo said they would also dispatch doctors specializing in hyperbaric medicine as a precautionary measure. He explained it was necessary to send out a medical team with this expertise to help the divers who are forced to swim in deep waters.

Commander Silvia Lopez, PCG medical chief, said hyperbaric medicine deals with decompression illness. She said divers are prone to suffer this ailment because they often dive in deep waters. Dr. Alexis Calderon, who is an expert in the field, is already on site.

“They could suffer lower body paralysis if they rapidly ascend. The deeper the water, the more nitrogen, so it is better that they stay at the same level and slowly ascend,” said Lopez.

The PCG spokesman said that at the moment, they do not intend to drill a hole in the hull of the ship.

“The situation now is still delicate because it could cause an oil spill. As of now, we have not yet put the oil spill boom in place.” – Evelyn Macairan