1 dead, 50 rescued as boat capsizes off Daanbantayan in Cebu
CEBU CITY — One died while 50 others were rescued when a motorized banca (outrigger) capsized off the coast of Daanbantayan in northern Cebu province.
The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) Cebu station said that a still unidentified woman was the lone casualty in the sea tragedy while most of the passengers and crew of MBCA Mercy Ray were safely brought to Maya port on Friday night.
Coast Guard personnel from the stations in Maya Port and Malapascua were immediately dispatched after receiving the distress call from the ill-fated MBCA Mercy Ray.
The boat departed from Poblacion, Daanbantayan on mainland Cebu island around 4 p.m. Friday afternoon en route to Carnasa Island.
On board were 43 passengers and 8 crew members. The boat also carried 10 sacks of rice and 70 cases of assorted soft drinks and beverages.
Article continues after this advertisementAccording to the initial information released by PCG Cebu, the boat was in the vicinity of Isla De Gato around 5:30 p.m. when sea waters started to fill its front portion.
Article continues after this advertisement“The outrigger then broke and the boat subsequently capsized,” the PCG said.
It is not yet clear whether the boat encountered huge waves or if it was overloaded when it sailed.
The survivors were all rescued and accounted for past 10 p.m. on Friday night.
The capsized motor banca off Daanbantayan town in Northern Cebu may have been “overloaded” according to the initial investigation from the Philippine Coast Guard in Central Visayas.
Lt. Junior Grade Erick Salcedo, PCG-Central Visayas spokesperson, said the seas were just in “moderate” condition when the incident happened late Friday afternoon.
“We found out that the banca was really overloaded,” said Salcedo.
He said the “overloading of the banca may have been the major factor why the water got inside the boat.
The boat captain is currently detained at the Daanbantayan police station for possible charges of “reckless imprudence resulting in homicide.”
One of the possible violations initially found by the PCG investigators include the lack of clearance to sail from the PCG station in Daanbantayan, failure to submit Master’s Declaration of Safe Departure (MDSD), and the excess or overloading of the motor banca, MBCA Mercy Ray.
