Sulpicio Lines: Capsized vessel has compliance certificates

MANILA, Philippines - Sulpicio Lines Inc. (SLI) on Monday stressed that engine trouble did not cause one of its sea vessels, the MV Princess of the Stars, to capsize Saturday in Sibulan Island, saying they have certificates to prove this. In a press briefing, SLI vice president for passage Sally Buaron said the vessel, which carried over 800 passengers, was in tip-top shape and has “never recorded any problem" during its entire operations since they acquired it in May 2001. “We have certificates to show that the vessel is seaworthy and has the necessary compliance certificates, and never it recorded any problem, kaya nagtataka kami bakit sinasabi nasira ang makina (We are wondering why there are reports that the vessel developed engine trouble)," Buaron said. “We’re at a loss also and we wanted also to investigate what really happen there," she added. Buaron said MV Princess of the Star has just undergone dry dock inspection and maintenance on February 2007 at the Subic Shipyard “therefore it would be impossible to say that the cause of the problem when it sank was engine failure." Edgar Go, first vice-president of SLI, also attested to the seaworthiness of the vessel, saying it is even assessed and inspected by the prestigious classification society, the Bureau Veritas Class Society. Administrator Vicente Suazo of the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) likewise conformed to the compliance and seaworthiness of MV Princess of the Star. Purchased on May 2001 in Japan, the 24-year old ship has a total gross tonnage of 23,824.17, can carry a total passenger of 1,992 and about 200 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of cargo. The vessel being manned by Capt. Florencio Marimon was carrying a total of 862 passengers - 111 crew members and 751 passengers, 81 of which were minors – when it capsized Saturday. Go said they had been maintaining contact with the vessel since it left Friday night around 8 p.m. at the Manila North Harbor. He said it was 12 noon the next day when they lost contact with the vessel’s chief. “The last message reported to us was that the ship ran aground and that it was listing on the port side," Go said. While an investigation is yet to be conducted, Go said he is convinced that the cause of the incident was the bad weather brought by Typhoon "Frank." - GMANews.TV