PCG ends search, rescue in Iloilo

The Philippine Coast Guard yesterday announced that it has terminated its search and rescue operations in Iloilo since Friday evening after they have recovered the last two missing persons from the sunken M/B Roliv.

PCG acting spokesman Captain Enrico Evangelista said that PCG commandant Vice Admiral Wilfredo Tamayo also ordered the immediate relief of Iloilo Coast Guard Station commander Captain Eduardo Fabricante and Ajuy Coast Guard Detachment head Petty Officer 1 Antonio Franco. Their relief will take effect tomorrow.

Evangelista said they have called off their operations Friday evening after the rescue divers have recovered all the 30 survivors and 14 fatalities from the 5.64 gross ton M/B Roliv, that capsized on Thursday near Concepcion Iloilo.

The last two recovered bodies were identified as Angelo Tuguero, 50, and Melinde Alopena, 70. The bodies of the fatalities were brought to the barangay hall of Barangay Bangonon in Tagubanhan Island, Concepcion, Iloilo province.

“We are also looking for the captain of vessel Florentino Padrelian not to detain him but as part of the procedure to interview him and to get details on the incident.” Evangelista said that they would also convene a Special Board of Marine Inquiry (SBMI) that would determine if the vessel’s owner and master should be held accountable for the sea tragedy.

The Coast Guard Internal Affairs Service would use the SBMI findings as basis when it conducts its separate probe to determine if Fabricante and Franco had any liability. “If at the end of its investigation, the CGIAS absolves them from any liability and that it was the captain’s fault then they would be reinstated to their previous positions,” he added.

The two capsizing of the M/B Don Dexter in Masbate that has killed at least 42 persons and the M/B Roliv has prompted the PCG to review the assignment of personnel of their detachments and the putting up of more mobile teams.

Since they are expecting 1,000 additional personnel by next year, Tamayo said, “They would be used to beef up our detachments. At present, an average of three personnel are assigned in each detachment, but once we deploy the additional 1,000 persons then we might add two each to critical areas.”

While the mobile teams aim to augment the lack of PCG personnel in the provinces, “They are the ones that go to the ports where, we do not have detachments or stations. They check the vessels before they are allowed to sail out to sea. But the problem is there is usually no schedule of the ship’s departure and we only apply proactive measures,” the PCG spokesman said.

Tamayo said that he is not making excuses for the PCG, but he reiterated his appeal for additional manpower support. The maritime agency currently has 194 detachments that is assigned to monitor 25,000 coastal barangays. The PCG has 5,000 strong personnel while the Philippines has 7,107 islands. Even if the agency would deploy one personnel for every island there would still be “a lot unguarded islands.”

He said there are hundreds of thousands of motorized bancas in the country and that the function to register motorized bancas has been devolved to the local government units. He also asked the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC), Regional Disaster Coordinating Council (RDCC), LGUs and the media to help in the dissemination of the latest weather bulletin to inform the ship owners and their captains if it is safe to sail.

Under the interim guidelines on the movement of the vessels during heavy weather, vessels would not be allowed to sail if storm signal number 1 has been hoisted over the port of origin, route and point of destination.