PCG tags ‘possible location’ of sunken ferry off Basilan

SEARCH AND RECOVERY Rescuers on a rubber boat sail toward a Philippine Coast Guard vessel as they tug an inflatable raft carrying two bodies retrieved from Basilan waters on Wednesday. With the recovery of the remains, the death toll in the Jan. 26 sinking of MV Trisha Kerstin 3 has reached 45, with four victims still unidentified. —PHILIPPINE COAST GUARD PHOTO

Technical divers from the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), braving the strong underwater currents off Baluk-Baluk Island in Hadji Muhtamad, Basilan, have identified the “possible location” of MV Trisha Kerstin 3, which sank while on its way to Sulu more than a week ago.

In a public advisory on Wednesday, the PCG said the breakthrough came during their dive operations on Tuesday, some eight days after the Jan. 26 tragedy.

Citing the account of Commander Cheska Jamorol, who is supervising the dive operation, the PCG said that the sunken vessel “is lying in an east-to-west orientation relative to Baluk-Baluk Island.”

This development has raised hopes the investigation into the incident can finally move forward.

The PCG used remotely operated vehicles to locate the vessel and also employed sound navigation and ranging (sonar) technology, which is effective in low-visibility settings.

Earlier, Capt. Noemi Cayabyab, PCG spokesperson, said the effort to locate the sunken ferry was key in determining “the reason why it sank, as well as if there are trapped individuals inside the vessel.”

Cayabyab had said that the PCG was establishing all possible causes of the ferry’s sinking, including overloading of both passengers and cargo, mechanical failure, and possible negligence of the owner or of authorities that allowed the vessel to leave port.

2 bodies found

The roll-on, roll-off passenger ferry, operated by Aleson Shipping Lines, sank on Jan. 26 while traveling from Zamboanga City to Jolo, Sulu.

Transportation Secretary Giovanni Lopez had initially given the PCG and the Maritime Industry Authority 15 days to complete the probe of the ferry sinking that, as of Wednesday, had claimed 45 lives.

The death toll climbed to 45 with the retrieval of two bodies floating off Baluk-Baluk Island on Wednesday.

In a statement, the PCG said the bodies were found while their operations were ongoing in the surrounding waters.

With the two cadavers added, four of the 45 fatalities were still unidentified as of Wednesday. The other two bodies were found on Jan. 30.

The last fatality to be identified was Balma Jumjumah Hadjirul, 20, a resident of Jolo, whose remains were found between Lampingan Island in Isabela City and Baluk-Baluk Island on Tuesday,

Coast guard personnel said they would continue to scour the area through a joint search and rescue team composed of teams from different government agencies, local governments and volunteer fishermen.