Engine of Leyte-bound ship conks out at sea

SURIGAO CITY, Philippines – Forty-five passengers and 17 crewmembers of a passenger ferry returned safely to the Lipata port here after the vessel suffered an engine failure while en route to Southern Leyte before dawn Saturday, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said.

PCG-Surigao port commander Nelson de la Torre said M/V Millennium left the Lipata port at around 3:30 a.m. Saturday but its engine malfunctioned an hour later.

De la Torre said this prompted the ship captain to bring the 45 passengers back to the Lipata port on another boat.

The PCG has ordered the ship’s management to fix the engine or it will not be allowed to sail in the meantime.

“This is for the safety of the riding public as we cannot afford another sea tragedy,” De la Torre told The STAR.

In a similar incident, a passenger ship of George and Peter Lines Inc. reportedly faced trouble while traveling from Dipolog City to Dumaguete City Saturday night.  

However, all passengers of MV Georich, whose engine reportedly conked out 14 miles off Dumaguete City, were safe when the MV Filipinas Iloilo immediately gave assistance to the troubled ship.

Chester Cokaliong, owner of Cokaliong Shipping Lines which operates the MV Filipinas Iloilo, said they immediately responded to MV Georich after a passenger informed them about the incident.

MV Filipinas Iloilo tugged MV Georich to the Dumaguete City port at around 9 p.m. MV Georich’s passengers were stranded for an hour during the incident.