Coast Guard divers lose sunken ship's marker

MANILA, Philippines - The last search and retrieval operation of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) for the bodies of victims of the sunken M/V Catalyn B was cancelled when the buoy marking the location of the wreckage was stolen by a still unidentified person.

PCG spokesperson Lt. Commander Arman Balilo said yesterday that the marker, which was attached to an orange buoy, lies 221 feet below sea level.

The divers needed to make only one more dive to confirm if there were still bodies in the vessel. But when they arrived in the area at around 9 a.m., the buoy could not be found.

The last dive in the area was made on Jan. 14.

“The divers went around looking for the vessel or the nylon rope that connected the marker to the ship, but after several attempts they could not find the marker,” Balilo said.

They called off the search at around 3 p.m.

Balilo said someone must have taken interest in the buoy and cut its connecting rope.

The PCG has recovered 25 bodies from the sunken ship.         

The 79-ton Catalyn-B collided with the steel-hulled, 369-ton F/B Anatalia last Dec. 24 at around 1:30 a.m. some 2.8 nautical miles off Limbones Island in Cavite.