Between the devil and churning seas
For a country surrounded by water, it’s heartbreaking that sea travel remains a perilous undertaking, with the Philippines holding the dubious record of having the world’s deadliest peacetime maritime disaster in the 1987 sinking of MV Doña Paz, with 4,386 fatalities.
Three recent sea tragedies underscore the needless loss of lives that bedevil sea transport in this archipelago, where the Philippine Ports Authority reported a record-breaking 6.28 million passengers traveling just over the 2025 Christmas holidays.
Early Monday morning, the roll-on, roll-off (RoRo) vessel MV Trisha Kerstin 3 of Aleson Shipping Lines bound for Jolo, Sulu, sank in the waters off Basilan province. At least 18 people died while more than 300 were rescued, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said. At least 49 remain missing, according to latest reports.
On Jan. 23, the Singapore-registered MV Devon Bay capsized off Sabangan Point, west of Pangasinan. Only 17 of the 21 Filipino crew were rescued while two died and four are still missing.
Meanwhile on Jan. 19, the MBCA Amejara went missing while navigating the Davao Gulf. Only one person has been rescued so far, while five bodies were found. Three crew members and 12 passengers remain missing, the PCG said, adding that high waves and strong winds hit the boat causing it to list and eventually sink.
Lifesaving measures
While forces of nature may have contributed to the tragedies, these were clearly not acts of God, but consequences of acts of omission, complacency by some parties, and even corruption.
Take the ferry Trisha Kerstin 3 that the PCG said was within passenger capacity. However, reports said the harness lashing a truck in place had snapped, causing the vehicle to move and the vessel to list on one side.
So who was in charge of ensuring that the vehicles in the cargo hold were securely fastened? Given similar incidents, have loading protocols been updated and strictly observed to prevent a repeat? Are third-party inspections routinely carried out before every sailing to rule out possible negligence?
The age of the RoRo vessel—31 years—was also brought up. Were there periodic assessment, required tests, and safety checks on the seaworthiness of the ship before it was allowed to sail?
Crew training is crucial as well. Passengers of the ferry recalled that there had been no communication about the vessel being in trouble and what lifesaving measures were in place—only an announcement on the loudspeaker for them to secure a life vest minutes before the ship sank. Who’s accountable here, and what’s being done to review crew training and instill in them a commitment to keep passenger welfare top of mind?
32 sea mishaps
Several reports meanwhile indicated that the MBCA Amejara had left port without proper clearance, which has now been confirmed by Coast Guard District Southeastern Mindanao. The PCG certainly has a lot of explaining to do in this case.
As for MV Devon Bay, the bulk carrier was sailing from Gutalac, Zamboanga del Sur to Yangjiang, China with a cargo of nickel ore, said its owner, the Singapore-based “K” Line Pte Ltd.
The rolling and pitching of the ship during maritime transport, combined with high moisture from the rains, can contribute to nickel ore becoming liquid, shifting suddenly, and endangering ship stability.
Authorities have acted swiftly given this series of sea disasters within a week. Already, the Department of Transportation has grounded all 24 passenger vessels of Aleson Shipping until they pass the maritime safety audit of the PCG. The company, it turns out, has been involved in 32 sea mishaps between 2019 and 2026, leading one to wonder if sanctions had been meted out at all for this pattern of gross neglect to persist. Could its continued operations have something to do with one of the owners being married to Zamboanga City’s mayor?
Dangerous cargo
In the case of MV Devon Bay, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources should keep a close watch over the highly lucrative nickel ore mining operations in the country. Open mining exposes the ore to moisture from the humid climate, adding to its likelihood to liquefy during transport. Close monitoring should ensure that the ore’s moisture content is within standards. Regulations must also be strictly enforced so that infrastructure on land and on vessels are at par with safety requirements on the handling and loading of nickel ore. Bulk carriers must be equipped with necessary safety mechanisms as well and their crew trained and certified to handle such dangerous cargo.
But definitely, an extensive investigation should determine the full accountability of both government and shipowners in all three cases, if only to show that maritime safety should always be paramount.
With sea travel a favored and cheaper means of connecting our more than 7000 islands, authorities and private entities must do more to make it far safer than the gamble with life and death it has sadly become.
