Ferry in Basilan mishap was overloaded, DoTr says

THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (DoTr) said the ferry that sank off the coast of Basilan had exceeded its passenger and cargo limit, leading to the deaths of at least 52 individuals.

“The vessel exceeded its passenger capacity, it’s authorized passenger capacity is 352 plus 24 to 27 crew members,” Transportation Assistant Secretary Manuel D. Cabochan III told a Senate inquiry, citing preliminary reports.

Mr. Cabochan said that there were inconsistencies with the passenger manifest of M/V Trisha Kerstin 3 due to the number of survivors and cadavers recovered.

The vessel’s manifest logged 332 passengers and 27 crew. However, survivors from the incidents were tallied at 293, while 52 were reported dead, and 24 were missing.

He said that the ship was only allowed to carry 352 passengers along with 24 to 27 crew members.

“There were some that were not in the passenger manifest, so our finding is that they exceeded passenger capacity,” he added.

He said that the vessel was only allowed to carry 352 passengers along with 24 to 27 crew members.

Mr. Cabochan added that cargo trucks were unable to pass through weighing scales, raising overloading concerns which may have affected the vessel’s stability.

“Cargo overloading may have caused lashing problems, so they may have been severed causing possible shifting of rolling cargo affecting the stability of the vessel,” he said.

The DoTr also reported that there were safety violations logged during pre-departure checks, despite the presence of a safety certificate.

“The question is why was it still able to depart?” Mr. Cabochan said. “We find that there was neglect of duty.”

The passenger ferry M/V Trisha Kerstin 3 sank about five kilometers northeast of Baluk-Baluk Island, Basilan last month while it was en route to Zamboanga City to Jolo, Sulu. — Adrian H. Halili