Coast Guard to probe motor boat mishap as death toll hits 42

LEGAZPI CITY – The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) regional office will conduct an inquiry into the sinking of MB Don Dexter Cathlyn to determine if the motorized passenger boat was overloaded when it overturned.

This developed as the boat captain, Dante Bombales, was taken into custody by the Coast Guard yesterday.

Bombales denied reports that the boat was overloaded.

Bombales blamed the accident on the weather, saying it suddenly turned nasty half an hour into the voyage.

Some 100 people were rescued and 10 were missing after the wooden-hulled boat was battered by winds and waves Tuesday shortly after leaving Masbate for Sorsogon.

The Office of Civil Defense in Bicol led by Raffy Alejandro said the death toll reached 42 yesterday.

Alejandro said the initial investigation indicated the boat was overloaded when it capsized.

He said the number of dead or missing could increase since there were undeclared passengers in the boat.

“There were undeclared passengers. One of the possibilities is that it left without clearance from the coast guard, based on initial information,” he said.

Bombales claimed he had informed the Coast Guard before departing Alejandro said the Board of Marine Inquiry would convene to conduct the formal investigation into the incident.

“This will be the subject of an investigation by the Coast Guard since apparently it was overloaded,” Alejandro said.

Coast Guard acting spokesman Capt. Enrico Evangelista said the Coast Guard Internal Affairs Service (CGIAS) would be investigating Lt. Commander Reynaldo Pabico, the Coast Guard commander in Masbate, for possible operational lapses.

Coast Guard regional operations chief Lt. Commander Joey Velarde said search and rescue operations are still ongoing.

Velarde said that as of yesterday morning, divers retrieved a female passenger and a baby boy from the site.

No clearance

Masbate provincial police director Senior Superintendent Reuben Sindac added their initial probe into the tragedy showed the boat was operating illegally.

Sindac arrested Bombales and turned the boat captain over to the Coast Guard for questioning.

Although the boat left port in relatively clear weather, officials said it did not have the required clearance and may have been overloaded.

“The Coast Guard should have inspected it and prevented it from leaving if it found violations,” Evangelista said.

“In this case, the operator of the ship did not inform us it was leaving port.”

The Coast Guard said they would also summon boat owner Gennie Zuñiga for the investigation.

Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) regional director Lucita Madaring said the passenger vessel was allowed to carry one hundred passengers, including four crewmembers and two helpers.

The Don Dexter Cathlyn has a gross tonnage of 13.73.

The Coast Guard said the investigators would secure a copy of the Passenger Ship Safety Certificate that would indicate the allowable number of passengers in the boat.

“If you will add up the figures, it would seem that there were more than 150 people on board,” Evangelista said.

He explained that vessel’s captain should have informed the local Coast Guard that they are about to depart and submit his Master’s Oath ad Safe Departure (MOSD) document.

The Coast Guard would then inspect if there was an excess of passengers and if everything is in order he would accept the captain’s MOSD and allow it to sail.

The initial information, however, indicated Bombales failed to comply with the required procedure and sailed without seeking the Coast Guard’s approval, Evangelista said.

‘Subasko’

On the other hand, weather forecaster Prisco Nilo said the ship was likely hit by a sudden monsoon squall caused by a thunderstorm.

Although no weather disturbance prevailed over the country last Tuesday, “moderate to rough seas” affected the area on that day.

“It was likely that the vessel encountered a squall brought about by a thunderstorm,” Nilo said.

Bombales had claimed the weather suddenly turned bad and caught them by surprise. Locals call this weather phenomenon as “subasko.” – With Cet Dematera, James Mananghaya, Evelyn Macairan, Sheila Crisostomo, Helen Flores, Marvin Sy, Cecille Suerte Felipe, AP