EDITORIAL - Here we go again, investigating

Had it not been for the passing MV Filipinas Dinagat of Cokaliong Shipping Lines, it is distinctly possible that the passengers of the capsized motor banca MB Mansan would have been dead by now. They had been in the water for at least eight hours already after their boat, which left Talibon, Bohol for Cebu Friday night, proved no match for the strong winds and rough seas spawned by typhoon Lando far to the north.

An investigation is underway into the latest maritime accident. But that is not surprising. An investigation is a normal course of action that happens after there is an accident. What is surprising is why there is a need to investigate anything at all again. Why did the Mansan dare to venture out to sea under such rough, stormy conditions? Was the Mansan given any warning, and if so, did it ignore it? Was the Mansan even aware of what awaited it?

Luckily for the Mansan, it capsized not too far away from the entrance to the Cebu harbor, where it was bound to be seen by ships headed in or out of the port of Cebu. Luckily as well for the Mansan was the fact that the first ship to come by was a Cokaliong ship, of a company that strictly adheres to maritime traditions of never ignoring distress calls at sea. It was also a ship large enough to battle the rough conditions of the rescue.

But the luck that allowed the passengers of the Mansan to cheat death should not drive those involved in the maritime industry into complacency. There were very clear violations involved in the Mansan incident, not the least of which was why it was allowed to sail or why it sailed under such conditions. To prove the point, not long after the incident, gale warnings were raised that prevented certain vessels from sailing because of the rough sea conditions.

Typhoon Lando may have been headed toward the northern parts of Luzon, but warnings about its effects on sea conditions in many areas in the country, including the Visayas, were amply and frequently aired during weather bulletins and regular news. Clearly, travel by sea, especially by small seacraft such as the Mansan, raises some very serious concerns.

And yet, despite the ample and frequent weather advisories, the Mansan sailed, or was allowed to sail. Clearly, the lessons learned from previous maritime tragedies have been proved to have fallen on deaf ears yet once again. In fact, the latest opportunity for bitter lessons to be learned happened just months ago in Ormoc, not too far from where the Mansan met its fate.

More tragically than the Mansan, the Ormoc incident resulted in a number of lives lost. And yet here we go again, investigating yet another sea accident. This is not to say that sea accidents never happen. They are bound to, especially in an archipelagic country like ours where the primary mode of moving people and cargo through the islands is by sea. But the fact that we are primarily sea-borne should have made it a point for government never to compromise on sea safety.