Sulpicio still using Titanic-type life vests -- prober
By Katherine Evangelista
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 21:29:00 07/04/2008
MANILA, Philippines -- Sulpicio Lines Inc., owner of the sunken ferry MV Princess of the Stars, is still using life vests similar to those worn on Titanic, a member of the panel investigating the tragedy said Friday.
This observation came a day after another member of the Board of Marine Inquiry suggested the inter-island vessel could have sunk because it sailed with deficient stabilizers.
BMI Vice-chair Rear Admiral Benjamin Mata said the video showing safety and emergency measures during departure of Sulpicio ships showed that of the three types of life vests being used on its ships, one is already obsolete.
The life jacket worn over the head and tied once around the waist was the same vest used onboard the RMS Titanic, which went down after it struck an iceberg in the North Atlantic Ocean on April 14, 1912. A total of 1,517 people perished in that tragedy.
Mata said the outmoded vest was not designed to keep the head afloat in case the wearer falls unconscious.
He said this type of life jackets must immediately be replaced.
At the same time, Mata noted that there was no demonstration made as to how the life boats would be deployed. The video should be revised to include the step-by-step procedure on how to use the life boats during emergencies, he said.
And all lifeboats should have ample supplies of potable water, Mata said, citing reports that some lifeboats used by survivors did not have supplies of drinking water.
These changes, Mata said, would help "improve the image of Sulpico."
On Thursday, BMI member Commodore Amado Romillo said that based on the shipping firm’s report, two of the four ballast tanks of the ill-fated ferry were empty when it sailed.
He said the empty tanks made the ship “unstable” and could have caused it to capsize when big waves battered it after sailing into the eye of Typhoon Frank (international codename: Fengshen) on June 21.
The ship had over 800 passengers and crew when it went down. Only 57 have been found alive.
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