It has caused 18 casualties, with 10 others still missing.
On Monday, January 26, a passenger-cargo roll-on/roll-off (RORO) vessel, identified the M/V Trisha Kerstin 3, sank around 1:50 a.m. near Baluk-Baluk Island in Basilan while en route to Jolo, Sulu.
It carried a total of 332 passengers and 27 crew members, with the incident having caused 18 casualties, while 10 other are still missing. The other 316 passengers have already been accounted for and are safe.
In light of what occurred, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has ordered the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to immediately assist the victims of a public transport vessel sinking in Basilan waters on Monday, amid ongoing rescue operations.
“Sa ngayon ay kung anuman ang nangyari dito sa ferry accident, ang DSWD ay inutusan na ng Pangulo para mabigyan ng karampatang tulong ang ating mga kababayan na naapektuhan nito at nabiktima sa nasabing incident,” Palace Press Officer Usec. Claire Castro said in a Palace press briefing on Monday.
The DSWD reported that prepositioned ready-to-eat food boxes were already distributed to the rescued passengers and crew members at the Isabela City Port in Basilan.
The Quick Response Team of the DSWD Field Office in the Zamboanga Peninsula region also conducted profiling and assessment of the passengers to identify other needs.
Meanwhile, Castro added that the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) is conducting rescue operations, with investigations the cause of the incident underway.
SHIP OWNER’S FLEET GROUNDED
With the ongoing probe, Transportation Secretary Giovanni Lopez on Tuesday ordered the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) to ground all passenger ships under Aleson Shipping Lines, which owns the ship.
It will be in effect until a thorough and comprehensive maritime safety and inspection audit of its fleet and crew has been completed.
He also ordered the PCG to complete the probe in 15 days, and immediately dispatch its personnel to conduct emergency readiness evaluation, safety inspection and audit on two Aleson vessels travelling from Bongao, Tawi-Tawi to Zamboanga, and Jolo, Sulu to Zamboanga.
“We are grounding the entire fleet of Aleson Shipping Lines and I’m asking MARINA to conduct a maritime safety audit, together with the Philippine Coast Guard, hindi lang ‘yung barko, kasama na rin ang kanilang crew,” said Lopez.
The transport chief said the investigation aims to determine the cause of the vessel’s sinking, amd to identify all possible lapses by both the government and the ship owner. “If we exact accountability to the ship owners, we will exact higher accountability sa gobyerno,” he added.
Sec. Lopez likewise ordered the MARINA to submit a complete maritime safety audit and inventory of the entire passenger vessel fleet in the country in the coming days.
He, however, pointed out that the priority is for the shipping company to expedite the issuance of insurance claims and provide emergency assistance to the victims’ families and rescued passengers.
Lopez also added that the firm should streamline its process and make it easy for the claimants.