Ship with 400 passengers remains stranded off Mindoro--PCG
By Katherine Evangelista
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 14:34:00 05/16/2008
MANILA, Philippines – (UPDATE) Four hundred passengers aboard the M/V Pacific Alpa remained stranded off the coast of Mindoro as strong waves have prevented the vessel from docking at the Dangay Pier, a Philippine Coast Guard official said.
The M/V Pacific Alpa, a Roll-On-Roll-Off transport ship bound for Caticlan, Aklan was scheduled to depart from the Dangay Pier at 2 a.m. Thursday but was delayed by two hours due to bad weather caused by the tropical storm “Cosme,” PCG spokesman Armand Balilo said in a press conference Friday.
Shortly after ship’s departure, the captain and the owner of M/V Pacific Alpa decided to return to Mindoro since they could not cross the waters due to the “unusual weather,” Balilo said.
M/V Pacific Alpa, owned by Starlite Shipping, is the last of the six transport vessels which got stranded off the coast of Roxas, Mindoro last Thursday until early morning of Friday, Balilo said.
The Dangay Pier is a small pier and cannot accommodate many ships at the same time, Balilo said.
The bad weather is also to blame since most of the stranded vessels were not big enough to counter the strong winds and waves, said Balilo, adding, that unloading a transport ship takes roughly two to three hours.
Five of the stranded vessels were able to dock, the last being M/V Maria Feliza of Montenegro Shipping, which was able to unload its 50 passengers and 15 rolling cargoes as of 6 a.m. Friday, Balilo said. M/V Maria Feliza came from Caticlan, Aklan.
As a result of their prolonged stay, passengers of the M/V Pacific Alpa have started complaining of hunger, thirst, and seasickness, Balilo said.
Balilo said M/V Pacific Alpa has been implementing safety measures to ensure the security of its passengers. “Passengers have been wearing their life vests since last night,” said Balilo.
He added that the PCG, in coordination with Starlite Shipping, has deployed a coast guard helicopter and an islander plane to drop off food and water. They have also alerted the local coast guard in Mindoro, said Balilo.
Currently, the PCG has been coordinating a rescue operation. They plan to transfer the stranded passengers onto bigger ships which could dock at the pier, Balilo said.
Balilo added that the weather in Mindoro has improved and large transport vessels could be able to cross the waters. However, he advised travelers to keep abreast with the latest weather updates from the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration.
With a report from Joanna Los Baños, Inquirer Southern Luzon
|
