‘Ill-fated Ferry left Masbate port without clearance’

MANILA, Philippines - The owner and captain of a motor banca that capsized off Masbate province Tuesday face charges for the deaths of at least 40 passengers, after the Coast Guard claimed the boat left port without clearance. Coast Guard chief of staff Capt. Efren Evangelista said Wednesday the MV Don Dexter Kathleen left port without the required clearance from local Coast Guard officials. "Sa pagkakataong ito hindi nagpaalam ang operator ng banca na sila ay maglalayag. Sa Coast Guard, hindi sila papayagang maglayag kung meron silang violation (In this case, the operator of the ship did not inform us it was leaving port. The Coast Guard should have inspected it and prevented it from leaving if it found violations)," he said in an interview on dwIZ radio. He said the Coast Guard is now investigating reports of overloading, after local police said it was likely passengers not on the ship's manifest were allowed to board. "Kinukuha namin ang certificate of public convenience para malaman ilan ang authorized ikarga (We are now getting a copy of the ship's certificate of public convenience to find how many passengers it is authorized to carry)," he said. Evangelista also said the captain of the ship, Dante Bombales, is now in Coast Guard custody. However, he said the owner has yet to contact them as of Wednesday morning. Bombales claimed the weather was clear but a local phenomenon involving a sudden gust of wind and big waves overwhelmed the vessel, Evangelista said. "Ni-require siya ng Coast Guard station na mag-submit ng marine protest para malaman ang iba pang bagay sa maritime incident na ito (The Coast Guard station in Masbate has required him to submit a maritime incident to find out what happened)," he said. As of Wednesday morning, Evangelista said at least 40 passengers were confirmed dead. Preliminary reports said the vessel was bound for Bulan town in Sorsogon when the incident occurred. - GMANews.TV