The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) stated that search and rescue (SAR) efforts will proceed without letup until every passenger of the tragic M/V Trisha Kerstin 3 has been located.
PCG commandant, Admiral Ronnie Gil Gavan, said the investigation into the incident will commence once the SAR and retrieval operations are terminated.
Gavan declined to give a timeline, saying that in past operations, “survivors have been found even several days after the incident and the rescue task has ended.”
He added that verified data they gathered showed that the ferry boat was carrying 344 people when it departed the port of Zamboanga – 317 passengers, and not 332 as listed on the manifest, as well as 26 crew members and one sea marshal.
“It was determined during further validation that 15 among the 332 passengers listed on the manifest did not board when the vessel departed the local port,” Gavan said in a press briefing here Monday night.
He said the vessel was not overloaded, as its maximum passenger capacity is 352 and the manifest shows 332 passengers.
“There are still 35 available slots for passengers since 15 of them canceled their travel,” he said.
As of Monday night, 316 survivors were accounted for, while 18 were confirmed dead and 10 remain missing.
Eight of the 10 missing are crew members of the ill-fated vessel, including the sea marshal.
No crew member has so far been among the dead.
Gavan ordered all PCG stations to tighten pre-departure inspections to ensure that all departing vessels are not overloaded.
He said he remains optimistic that there would be no oil spill, although they have noted an oil sheen at the incident site.
He, however, said that diesel fuel dissipates as it is classified as light oil.
The boat was carrying 25,000 liters of diesel fuel when it sank. (PNA)
