An overloaded passenger boat capsized in a lake in Binangonan, Rizal, on Thursday, killing 26 people on board, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said on Friday.
The accident happened in the early afternoon at Laguna Lake, hours after Typhoon Egay had swept out of the northern Philippines.
The wooden outrigger “encountered strong winds prompting all passengers to panic and (go) to the port (left) side,” a coast guard statement said.
“The boat had clearance to sail. There was no more storm in the area,” PCG spokesman Rear Admiral Armando Balilo told reporters on Thursday.
The PCG found out that the boat could carry up to 42 people, including the captain and two crew members, and that only 22 passengers were recorded on the manifest prior to the accident.
Rescuers retrieved 26 bodies from the water and there were 40 survivors, the coast guard said.
The PCG and the Philippine National Police have launched separate investigations into the incident as the coast guard resumed search and rescue and retrieval operations.
The boat’s captain, who is currently in the custody of authorities, apologized for the incident. He said he was unaware that the crew members continued to take on passengers while he was on his way to deliver the manifest to the coast guard station.
In a television interview on Thursday, Balilo said the PCG would also investigate why the passengers were not wearing life jackets during the trip.
Boat’s safety certificate suspended
Meanwhile, the passenger boat Princess Aya’s safety certificate was suspended by the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA).
”The decision to suspend the safety certificate is in response to the unfortunate sea incident, which raises concerns about the integrity of the ship’s hull, integral parts, and other affected machinery/appliances,” MARINA said in a statement.
The agency said the suspension would only be lifted following a thorough inspection of the vessel and a comprehensive evaluation by MARINA inspectors.
”The safety and well-being of passengers and crew remain the utmost priority, and any reinstatement of the certificate will be based on favorable recommendations ensuring the vessel’s compliance with all safety standards and regulations,” it added.
”Additionally, the MARINA will also initiate administrative proceedings relative to its Certificate of Public Convenience (CPC) once all relevant data is gathered and the Marine Safety Investigation (MSI) is completed.”
The passenger boat was making its regular run from the municipality of Binangonan to the island of Talim in the middle of the lake, municipality rescue official Kenneth Cirados told AFP.
“The boat sank in front of us while on its way home to the island,” said Binangonan resident Frederic Sison, who had been standing at the Kalinawan port when the incident happened.
Video footage of the rescue shared by the coast guard showed a man standing on the hull of the boat that was lying on its side, shouting “There are so many people here,” as small outrigger boats circled trying to help.
Another clip showed two rescuers leaning from the side of a boat to pluck a person who appeared to be unconscious from the calm waters.
Mobile phone footage taken by Sison and shared with AFP showed anxious people standing on the shore watching the boats take part in the frantic rescue effort.
In the video, a young boatman said he saved four people including a disabled person and a girl.
A woman could be seen doing chest compressions on one of several victims laid out on the concrete pier, as men lifted more motionless people out of small boats.
Boats, including wooden outriggers and passenger ferries that provide transport between islands, had been ordered to shore in Luzon and central islands earlier in the week due to gale warnings as the typhoon intensified the southwest monsoon.
The Philippines, an archipelago of more than 7,000 islands, has a poor maritime safety record, with scores dying in mishaps at sea each year, usually aboard wooden-hulled outriggers used for fishing or to move people from one small island to another.
