Task force wants to remove Princess wreck by June 21

MANILA, Philippines - The Princess of the Stars-Task Force (POTS-TF) is racing against time to meet its June 21 deadline to complete or at least substantially finish the salvaging of the 23,000-gross ton vessel that sank off Sibuyan Island in Romblon province at the height of typhoon “Frank” last year.

Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) commandant Admiral Wilfredo Tamayo could not give a definite date as to when they could start implementing phase three or the removal of the shipwreck.

The POTS-TF, of which the PCG is a member, has set a self-imposed deadline to finish the third and final phase of their salvaging operation by June 21, coinciding with the first anniversary of the sinking of the M/V Princess of the Stars.

“We recently had a meeting and it seems that the salvaging firm CV Gaspar Salvage and Lighterage Corp., that was earlier hired by the M/V Princess of the Stars’ new owner, Royal Jessan Petromin Resources Inc. (RJPRI), backed out. We instructed Royal Jessan to hurry up in looking for a replacement for CV Gaspar Salvage,” Tamayo said.

It is only after the RJPRI has contracted a new salvaging firm that would undertake the removal of the wreck would they be able to evaluate the capability of the new firm. 

The POTS-TF only has 50 days left to remove the shipwreck.

Tamayo admitted that the unusual weather is also a concern. “The salvaging operation may be affected depending on the frequency of the storms,” he said.

Commander Allan de la Vega, of the PCG-Maritime Safety Services Officer, earlier said the RJPRI and the new salvaging firm would have to apply for a salvaging permit before any work could be done.

“We have yet to learn how the salvaging firm intends to go about doing phase three. Do they intend to refloat the whole ship, turn it into scrap metal, or cut it in two, then refloat? It is only after we have learned the procedure would we know how they could go about with the other concerns such as looking for possible bodies that were trapped in the ship,” De la Vega said.

He added: “Remember that the previous salvaging firm Harbor Star took charge of phase two, removing the bodies, but they were not able to go to the bottom of the ship because of the depth. It is only after we know about their plans can we make recommendations… They have to know where the ship’s accommodation and cargo areas are, where there could be other bodies.”

The PCG halted its salvaging operation last December, after it filed a motion for authority to proceed with the last phase of the wreck removal and retrieval operations. The Office of the Solicitor General represented the PCG and the POTS-TF.

Judge Antonio Eugenio Jr. of the Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 24 recently issued an order recognizing the PCG’s inherent duty to retrieve anything from the sea that may be considered hazardous to navigation.

The court added that the authority is not for the court to grant or deny. The OSG received the court’s order only last April 14.

But Tamayo clarified that even if Sulpicio Lines Inc. (SLI) had sold the ship to RJPRI, the former still has some responsibility in the third and final phase of the retrieval operation, particularly on remains still inside the wreck. 

The M/V Princess of the Stars left the Port of Manila on June 20, 2008 for its voyage to Cebu. However, just before noon the following day, off Sibuyan Island in Romblon, it entered the eye of typhoon Frank and was battered by strong winds and huge waves, causing it to tilt by 40 degrees to its port side (left side) and turn over completely.

It has been declared that the tragedy left 33 survivors, 548 confirmed dead, and 283 others missing.

Harbor Star, the salvor firm hired by SLI, terminated phase two that covered the search and recovery of bodies last Nov. 10.

It removed 400 drums of endosulfan and toxic chemicals such as hydrocarbons (bunker fuel) from the vessel. Still left in the ship though were half a kilo of trap, 10 kilos of antracol, a liter of tamaron, and 6,500 liters of hydrocarbons.