Saturday, June 28, 2008
“Buanga ning Pagasa, pataka lang (Pagasa is crazy, it is only guessing)!â€
Nestor Ponteros, Sulpicio Lines Inc.’s port officer in Cebu, said this was the last message received by the SLI office in Cebu from Florencio Marimon Sr., the captain of the ill-fated M/V Princess of the Stars, just before 7 a.m. of June 21.
Marimon is still missing.
The last communication was received just before the 23,000-gross tonnage passenger vessel capsized off Sibuyan Island in Romblon last Saturday.
Because of this, SLI is reportedly planning to file charges against the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa), according to legal counsel Arthur Lim.
Lim refused to divulge the company’s plans but said they would make an announcement on Monday after they have filed the case. “We are just studying all the possible angles and that is an option.â€
He said the government’s weather bureau reportedly committed “gross incompetence and negligence. Pagasa brought about this unfortunate tragedy.â€
SLI meanwhile said yesterday that they would fast-track the payments to the legal heirs of the passengers who perished or are still missing in the ferry tragedy.
In a one-page statement, Lim said Sulpicio would cut the waiting time from one year to a week, “if we can deliver the check in one or two days so much the better.â€
He added that they would no longer wait for the authorities to retrieve the bodies before they hand out the P200,000 check. If all the 724 passengers were victims, the SLI would be spending P144 million.
In yesterday’s hearing before the Board of Marine Inquiry (BMI), Lim told the seven-man body that the unfortunate event was caused by Pagasa “because it failed to disseminate the change in the course of typhoon ‘Frank’ from 11 p.m. of June 20, three hours after the vessel left.â€
He added that Pagasa disseminated the information the first time at 6 a.m. on June 21 but failed to inform the ship when the storm changed course and allegedly did not coordinate with the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG).
Lim also appealed to the BMI to summon Pagasa to the investigation.
He said had they been informed in time or had Pagasa broadcasted earlier, the Princess of the Stars would have been able to seek shelter in Looc Bay in Romblon and the tragedy would have been avoided.
Ponteros said he has been with the SLI for several years and was once the captain of the ill-fated M/V Doña Paz. But at the time of the Doña Paz’s sinking in 1987, he was on leave and was in the United States.
He said he had known the 56-year-old Marimon since 1978 and was like a brother to him.
“He is the best master that we have,†he said.
Just before the ship left the port of Manila, the SLI port officer in Cebu advised Marimon “to take precaution and the captain said that he will just avoid the typhoon and take shelter at Tablas Island.â€
At 9 a.m., they had difficulty contacting the ship through their single side band (SSB) radio and were forced to use the cellular phone.
Ponteros’ nephew, who was the second mate officer of Princess of the Stars, sent him a text message.
“Uncle, we are listing 40 degrees portside. We are already preparing to abandon ship. Passengers are now wearing life vests. Pray for our safety,†the message read. He then called his nephew and managed to talk to the captain.
Ponteros also denied early reports that the ship encountered engine trouble but that their speed was “half-ahead.â€
However, it was a certain Captain Eugenio from SLI’s office in Manila who reportedly informed the PCG last Saturday that it encountered engine trouble.
BMI vice chairman Rear Admiral Benjamin Mata said it should be a standard operating procedure (SOP) of the shipping line to always check on its ship. “Like a father to a son, even if they are already living separately, they should still check on them from time to time.â€
Apart from Pagasa, SLI could also rely on other weather bureaus in Hong Kong and Japan.
Mata, who has been a part of the shipping industry for at least four decades, said that during their time, there were no fax messages so they would at times depend on other equipment such as barometers to determine the weather. “On his own, the captain could predict the direction of the ship.â€
Apart from Ponteros, at least two radio operators from SLI’s Cebu office were also presented before the BMI, namely, Allan Romares and Noli Alpas.
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