Mother and her infant endure darkness awaiting rescue from M/V Trisha Kerstin

The mother of the youngest survivor of the ill-fated M/V Trisha Kerstin 3 recalled her experience of being stranded at sea while waiting for rescue after the vessel sank.

According to a "24 Oras" report by Jonathan Andal on Friday, the staff of Aleson Shipping Lines met with some of the survivors of the capsized vessel to provide assistance.

One of the victims was Nur-Razam Alih Tiblan, mother of a seven-month-old survivor who had been named the youngest survivor of the tragedy so far.

Nur-Razam shared that she and her infant were stranded at sea for about three hours before they were rescued.

“Buti talaga hindi siya nag-iyak-iyak… Malamig, pero siya parang wala lang talaga. Madilim, wala kang makikita, tapos kung may maririnig ako na magsalita, tinatawag ko [na] tulong, tulong, pwede palapit ka dito para may mahawakan lang kasi may bata ako dito,” she shared.

(It’s a good thing he didn’t cry… It was cold, but he didn’t seem to mind. It was dark, you couldn’t see anything, and if I heard someone speak I called out to them [for] help, if they can come over so I can hold on to something because I had a child with me.)

Another victim, Nurjida Sawadjaan, said that she was also stranded at sea with her father, her 2-year-old and her 9-year-old children.

She shared that they all thought they would meet their end at the time, and that the experience had left her children traumatized.

“Ito walang lifejacket, ginanyan ko lang sir… Ginaw na ginaw kami. Kung natagalan yun, ewan ko na lang.  Hindi pa kami marunong lumangoy. Akala namin katapusan na namin sir.  Yung mga anak ko, na-trauma,” she said.

(This one had no life jacket, so I just held him like this… We were so cold. If it lasted longer, I don’t know what could have happened. We don't know how to swim either. We thought we were about to meet our end. My children are traumatized.)

Meanwhile, the Zamboanga City government said that some survivors admitted not registering with the ship’s manifesto and buying tickets from scalpers and inside the ship.

The Philippine Coast Guard earlier ruled out overloading as the cause of the sinking, but the number of cadavers found had since surpassed the number of missing passengers listed on the manifest.

“Mayroong mga pasaherong na nagkukwento, inaamin nila na wala sila sa manifesto dahil bumili silang tiket sa loob na ng barko. Mayroon din nag-amin na bumili ng tiket doon sa mga scalpers.  Kaya nga, mayroong talaga wala sa manifesto. Mayroong din mga truck o mga ibang sasakyan, di ba?  Pero nakalista lang yung driver, hindi nalistahan yung pahinante,” added Office of the City Mayor of Zamboanga Executive Secretary Celso Lobregat.

(Some passengers recalled their stories, and admitted that they weren’t part of the manifesto because they bought tickets on board the ship. There are people who also admitted to buying tickets from scalpers. That’s why there really are people not part of the manifesto. There are also trucks and other cars, right? But the only people listed were the drivers, not the porters.)

Authorities have yet to locate the missing vessel.

M/V Trisha Kerstin 3 sank in the waters off Basilan on Monday, tallying up 316 survivors, 18 recovered bodies, and 10 missing individuals. —Jiselle Anne C. Casucian/LDF, GMA Integrated News