Ferry Tragedy

`

Yes .. this is certainly a terrible tragedy CA

Thing is that this burnt-out ship didn't sink

But they found 18 bodies huddled together

All trapped, below-decks, in the cheap seats

Ought NOT happen in any passenger vessel!

`

Yes, it's so sad and tragic. We take ferries a lot and I always look at the situation and assess the risk. Never sit where you can't jump overboard. Some of the Ocean Jets have no easy way out of the lower level and you know what would happen when people panic. Know where the life jackets are. Sounds ridiculous but you can't trust that they have your best interests in mind. They will not turn away paying customers, and as such, the RORO's are often overloaded, especially on weekends.

On our last trip from Siquijor we got off the first ferry as winds and seas were very high (Signal 1), the boat was overloaded, and they had not reduced capacity at all as required by maritime law under Signal 1 conditions. My woman waited two hours in the line to change the ticket and we caught the next ferry when the wind had died down, but it was still overloaded and the captain had problems docking in Dumaguete port due to still high winds repeatedly pushing the vessel out of line.

The important thing is not to be complacent. Have your wits about you and always check the conditions before sailing. Do not assume everything will be fine on any ferry.

@pnwcyclist Interesting as I was sure there was a mandatory suspension of travel under signal 1. Have they lifted that? I would never get on a ferry during signal 1. As far as I know, the coast guard inspects each trip before the ferry leaves port and you can usually see them do a walk through. This includes the Dumaguete Siquijor trips that we take every 1-2 months and as far as I can see, those trips are never overloaded although at one time, the situation was entirely different and people could bribe the coast guard. I do not consider traveling by ferry to be particularly safe however, given the number of disasters we have seen over the years.

I think you're correct, and to clarify my earlier comment, Signal 1 was not yet raised for Central Visayas, only north of Cebu, but winds were 25-30kph and gusting well over 30kph based on my experience. From sailing I am familiar with all the signs as well as I was monitoring via ventusky, etc. Very marginal. Yes, if it had been raised for Central Visayas they would have to suspend or reduce capacity, I'm not sure which. That vessel was really getting slammed while in port and I did not feel comfortable going out on it. The later one was bad enough and winds had dropped.

Yes, it's so sad and tragic. We take ferries a lot and I always look at the situation and assess the risk. Never sit where you can't jump overboard. Some of the Ocean Jets have no easy way out of the lower level and you know what would happen when people panic. Know where the life jackets are. Sounds ridiculous but you can't trust that they have your best interests in mind. They will not turn away paying customers, and as such, the RORO's are often overloaded, especially on weekends.
On our last trip from Siquijor we got off the first ferry as winds and seas were very high (Signal 1), the boat was overloaded, and they had not reduced capacity at all as required by maritime law under Signal 1 conditions. My woman waited two hours in the line to change the ticket and we caught the next ferry when the wind had died down, but it was still overloaded and the captain had problems docking in Dumaguete port due to still high winds repeatedly pushing the vessel out of line.

The important thing is not to be complacent. Have your wits about you and always check the conditions before sailing. Do not assume everything will be fine on any ferry.
-@pnwcyclist

Yes very sad news. I visited Siquijor last November and wanted to take the Ocean Jet but the timings were not convenient, either first thing in the morning or 6 in the evening. I think it goes on to Bohol and then Cebu City. I arrived mid afternoon on the Philippine Airlines flight. The Coco Grove said they would collect me at the airport. I was last on to the van which was packed out with fellow guests but they were all taking the 6pm Ocean Jet to Siquijor.

I chose to stay overnight at the sister hotel so I could spend some time in Dumaguete. Ended up catching the 2pm RoRo the following day. I'm glad I did because it was great sitting in the open with a gentle breeze blowing across the upper deck. 1 hour 15 minutes versus 30 mins on the Jet but whats the hurry?

@Cherryann01 From ABS-CBN news:

Below is a list of some of the maritime disasters in the country since 1980:

August 2013: At least 114 were killed after MV St. Thomas Aquinas collided with MV Sulpicio Express 7 while it was heading into a port in Cebu City via Cebu Strait.

June 2013: M/V Our Lady of Mt. Carmel sank off Masbate, killing 7 people.

June 12, 2012 : A storm capsized a wooden-hulled ferry off the coast of Palawan island, killing at least seven.

December 26, 2009: At least six people died and 44 went missing after ferry MV Baleno-9 sank.

December 24, 2009: Four people died and 23 went missing after the wooden-hulled Catalyn B with 73 people on board collided with a fishing vessel at the mouth of Manila Bay.

September 2009: Nine people were killed after Superferry 9 tilts sharply and then sinks near the southern city of Zamboanga.

May 2009: Wooden-hulled Commander 6, a small passenger boat, capsized at the Verde Island Passage near Mindoro, leaving 12 dead.

December 2008: The ferry Maejan capsized off the northern Philippines, leaving 30 dead.

November 2008: Don Dexter Kathleen, a small wooden-hulled ferry, capsized in freak winds off the central island of Masbate, leaving 42 dead.

June 2008: The MV Princess of the Stars, a Sulpicio Lines-owned ship, capsized off the coast of San Fernando, Romblon at the height of typhoon ''Frank.'' More than 700 people were killed.

August 2006: The MT Solar One, a cargo ship carrying two million liters of bunker fuel, sank off the Guimaras Strait. An estimated 500,000 liters of fuel spilled into Guimaras’ waters in the worst oil spill in Philippine history.

February 2004: Islamist militants firebombed the Superferry 14 near Manila Bay, leaving 116 dead.

April 2000: The cargo vessel Anahanda, overloaded with passengers, sank off the southern island of Jolo. About 100 of the estimated 150 people on board die.

September 1998: The Princess of the Orient ferry capsized near Fortune Island in Batangas and sank, killing 150 out of the 388 passengers.

February 1996: ML Gretchen I, an old wooden ferry, sank after being battered by strong winds near Cadiz City.

December 1995: MV Kimelody Cristy caught fire and sank off Fortune Island in Nasugbu Batangas, leaving 24 dead.

December 1994: A Singaporean freighter, MV Kota Suria, hit the ferry MV Cebu City in Manila Bay, leaving about 140 dead.

October 1988: The Dona Marilyn ferry, a Sulpicio Lines-owned ship, sank off the central island of Leyte, leaving 250 dead with only 147 survivors.

December 1987: The Dona Paz ferry collides with an oil tanker off Mindoro island near Manila, leaving more than 4,000 dead in the world's worst peacetime shipping disaster.

April 1980: The MV Don Juan, a luxury liner bound to Bacolod City collided with an oil tanker, MT Tacloban, off Tablas Strait in Mindoro, leaving 176 dead.

@danfinn I don't know what to say about these tradegies at sea other than I am truly sorry. The loss of one life is too much already. We are talking hundreds.

danfin - Far too many people have lost their lives in these tragedies and most of them were probably preventable.

First time I was in Manila in 1994 that freighter ran over a ferry in the bay.  Decided right then that I would not be taking any ferries in the Philippines.

Mugtek, you're right about that. I won't be taking ferries, either. In countries like South Korea and Italy, these captains go to jail for manslaughter for the same tragedies.

Captain Lee Joon-seok South Korea 300 students dead. Sentenced to 36 years.

Italy: The captain of the Costa Concordia, Francesco Schettino, was found guilty of manslaughter in 2016 and sentenced to 16 years in prison.

The only time I know of a Filipino captain going to jail was in New Zealand (zero casualties). The ship hit a reef.

I think a stiff prison sentence for negligence might be in order.

Lone Wolf NY

We should not jump to conclusions as to who was to blame for this tragic incident. Not every airline captain is to blame when an airliner crashes.

Don’t forget that these ferries in the most part are aged dilapidated death traps which should never have been given a certificate of sea worthiness in the first place.

Some fifty or so years ago in Airports there was vending machinesthat life insurance.

We should not jump to conclusions as to who was to blame for this tragic incident. Not every airline captain is to blame when an airliner crashes.
Don’t forget that these ferries in the most part are aged dilapidated death traps which should never have been given a certificate of sea worthiness in the first place.
-@Lotus Eater

A bit like Jeepney's?

Cheers, Steve.

@bigpearl I agree. Pilots and sea captains are normally thrown under the bus in the name of corporate profits when a tragedy occurs. My friends and I was in New York when Captain Scully landed his plane on the Hudson River. Despite the bad suggestions by air traffic controllers to land his plane in Teterborough Airport in NJ. As the captain of his plane, he made his own decisions. He knew he wasn't going to make it to Teterborough. So he landed in the river in one of the most congested city in the world. My friends and I did not see the landing, but we were there when the Passengers on the airplane wings was getting rescued. Big Pearl your right. Some air and sea captains do not get enough credit. And some shouldn't be behind the wheel.  Capt Scully? My hero!!! 😁

Lone Wolf Ny

@LoneWolfNY Steve, if you are reading this, my nephew here has been in nautical for a few decades. There is a big difference between Philippine airline pilots and ferry captains. Pilots have a lot of formal training but do you realize that ferry captains do not have the training that captains of sea-going vessels have? He informs me that ferry captains are paid about 1000php per day, $40, double the rate of construction workers but not in line with the responsibilities they have. At such low rates it is easy to find incompetence and even bribe influence. Also, he mentions that RORO's here have uncomfortably low drafts that make them subject to sinking under any signal condition. In high winds, stay away from RORO'S. And know that the ferry captain is just a regular guy, not an airline pilot. 

And the emission testing stations here letting  80 year old jeeps belching black smoke? Brown paper bags?

Cheers, Steve.

@danfinn Hi Danfin. I didn't know what a RORO was. I had to look it up. "RoRo is short for 'Roll-on, Roll-off', which describes how products are loaded and discharged from a vessel" Thanks for the update.

@LoneWolfNY Right. A car ferry is a RORO.

Yes, and they are hazards in every respect. All steel - just walking aboard you risk tripping on solid steel anchor points and tie downs, gashing your head open on an overhead beam, or slipping on slick bare metal stairs. That said, it is rather exciting, haha.. a change of pace from western countries, where we are coddled in safety regs.

It's understandable given the low fees they charge though, in line with affordability in a low income country. I'm surprised if they make much money, not surprising they don't pay the captain much. All you need to know is in the prayer played over the intercom at the beginning of every voyage.

@pnwcyclist I think they make their money on the vehicles, especially the larger trucks. The lower fares for passengers is sort of a side business which might be a wash for them.

I suspect you’re right, Dan. Small cars like our Mazda aren’t too bad when we go to southern Cebu island (Santander) about once a month (800 ea way, incl 2 pass), but I bet the trucks pay quite a bit. And on weekdays there are lots of them. Our car kind of disappears, haha.

@Cherryann01 It's not so much overloading these ferries that cause these tragedies. Instead, it's poor maintenance and lack of emergency equipment and proper training/orientation on how to abandon ship when a tragedy occurs.

@Cherryann01 It's not so much overloading these ferries that cause these tragedies. Instead, it's poor maintenance and lack of emergency equipment and proper training/orientation on how to abandon ship when a tragedy occurs.
-@Aeta Tribe

I agree so most of these ferries are death traps, accidents just waiting to happen. It does not seem to be much to ask for the ferries to be well maintained, the crew given proper training and the necessary emergency equipment to be provided and maintained.

I have only used the ferry in the Philippines on one occasion from Davao to Samal Island and return. Being that that particular ferry was used to transport people to the Pearl Farm Beach Resort ( a rather upmarket resort), I suspect that that was one of the better well maintained vessels in use.

One can't help thinking what the reaction to a similar tragedy involving a Philippine airliner with well to do Filipinos on board would have been.

@Cherryann01

Being that that particular ferry was used to transport people to the Pearl Farm Beach Resort ( a rather upmarket resort), I suspect that that was one of the better well maintained vessels in use.

I stayed at that resort a few years back. All the guests had a dedicated small passenger boat to take them directly to the hotel quay. "Another G&T before we dock Lotus?" "That would be nice - don't forget the lime and heavy on the ice"

@Cherryann01
Being that that particular ferry was used to transport people to the Pearl Farm Beach Resort ( a rather upmarket resort), I suspect that that was one of the better well maintained vessels in use.


I stayed at that resort a few years back. All the guests had a dedicated small passenger boat to take them directly to the hotel quay. "Another G&T before we land Lotus?" "That would be nice - don't forget the lime and heavy on the ice"
-@Lotus Eater

Yeh remember the resort well, ferried around by golf buggies, lovely cabins in nature with swimming pool nearby and a lovely bar high up giving good views. Food was lovely also.

I also remember the departure point just outside Davao with a swimming pool just in case people arrived early for the boat and fancied a quick dip.

@Lotus Eater This is why I don't take Philippine Airlines for the same reason. Billionaire Lucio Tan (the owner of PAL) is known to be a cheap businessman, shortchanging BIR (Bureau of Internal Revenue) for billions of pesos in back taxes. He literally applies the same business tactic when it comes to the quality of service he provides to his airline passengers. My biggest fear is he does the same on aircraft maintenance. I pray and hope not.

@Aeta Tribe

Interesting. I'm no lover of Philippine Airlines of late but to be fair the country has an excellent aviation safety record. My Filipino airline of choice is now Cebu Pacific: it has on average better punctuality and flies out of T3 which possesses far superior amenities to T2.