Date:
June 2003
Another Collision at Sea Claims More than 40 Lives
The
stormy weather which hit the Philippines over
the weekend 24/25 May resulted in tragedy
at the entrance to Manila Bay when a wooden-hulled
passenger ferry. The M.V. San Nicolas, en
route from Palawan to Manila collided in rough
seas with the outward-bound WG&A Super Ferry
12. The accident occurred on the morning of
Sunday 25 May. President Macapagal-Arroyo,
returning that morning from her US trip, went
to Coast Guard Headquarters for a briefing
on the collision and called immediately for
an inquiry.
At least 31 people aboard the San Nicolas
are known to have drowned while a total of
182 are known to have survived the collision.
According to the official tally, 24 people
are still missing. There were no casualties
aboard the super ferry.
Leaving aside for a moment the incident itself,
it became immediately apparent that there
had been irregularities in the manner in which
the San Nicolas had been allowed to leave
Palawan. There was no suggestion that the
vessel was overloaded although clearly there
were more people aboard than shown on the
ship's manifest, plus the fact that some people
shown on the manifest did not actually board
the vessel but gave their tickets to others.
In fact all this is known for certain is that
there were more people aboard the vessel (at
last twelve) than shown on the manifest.
It is the type of situation that occurs regularly
in the Philippines where a lackadaisical attitude
towards safety standards is often the norm.
The coast guard station commander in Palawan
who allowed the vessel to leave harbor has
been relieved of his position even in advance
of the official enquiry.
The Manila detachment of the Philippines Coast
Guard responded valiantly, once the tragedy
occurred but, it seems, was poorly equipped
to handle a large-scale rescue effort despite
the fact that such incidents appear to be
a regular occurrence in the Philippines. The
press revealed that radar equipment purchased
at a cost of some P1.2 billion (US$22.6 million)
and which could have prevented the collision
had it been in use, had never been put into
service because of "technical problems" and
was rotting in a government store.
The official investigation is underway. President
Arroyo has given them 15 days to pinpoint
responsibility and sanction those responsible
for the mishap.
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