‘No one saw her jump ship’
The ship captain of the Surigao-bound vessel where a 39-year-old female passenger disappeared during typhoon Butchoy yesterday said “no crew saw her jump overboard, if she did at all.”
In a marine protest filed with the Maritme Authority (Marina), Henry R. Romo, master of MV Filipinas Maasin of Cokaliong Shipping Lines, said he ordered his crew to search for the missing woman on board the vessel to no avail and “exercised extraordinary digiligence and due care in avoiding any unfortunate incident.”
The ship didn’t stop midsea to start a search and rescue operation.
The death of Ma. Gretel Enas, a mother of three, whose body was later found floating in Letye province, remains a mystery and heartache for family members who don’t believe she committed suicide.
“I never thought she would do something like that. Fighter man gud to siya (She was a fighter),” said elder sister Gladys Teves in an interview at home.
The victim, a self-made business owner of two grains retail stores and an Internet shop, will be laid to rest today in barangay Guizo, Mandaue City.
She left behind three children aged 2, 4 and 7 and a husband, who helped her run the stores.
Teves said it was not true that her sister suffered a nervous breakdown on the ship, although two passengers described the woman as crying and looking depressed.
Enas operated a retail business for more than 20 years in barangays Guizo and Canduman in Mandaue City.
She left Cebu Tuesday morning, June 12, to visit their 68-year-old mother Rosita Palomar who lives in Surigao, Dinagat Island. She travelled alone. phone.
Teves said her sister wanted to take a a vacation because she was bothered by the pressure of business rivals who envied her success.
“Maayo nang ako ang molakaw aron matigayon na sila.” (It’s better that I will be leaving so that they will have a peace of mind.), Teves quoted her younger sister as saying about the people peeving her, during their last phone conversation a day before her departure from Cebu port.
Teves said she could not believe that her sister took her own life by leaping into the sea.
Enas was the vice president of the Homeowners Association in their subdivision (Marianville) and treasurer of the Retailer’s Association Guizo Satellite Market.
Her husband refused to be interviewed for this story.
In his marine protest, the skipper of MV Filipinas Maasin said the watchman on duty saw the passenger Enas “at the catwalk of the vessel” while the ship was en route to Surigao.
“Since the seas were very rough, she was advised to get inside the vessel, until she was at her assigned accommodation at Economy Deck B and (fell) asleep.”
The skipper said he ordered his crew to search for her on board the ship but she couldn’t be found.
The captain declared her missing upon arrival at the Port of Cebui on June 14, Thursday.
“I publicly protest against all persons concerned who shall attribute fault on my part, my officers and crew regarding this incident,” said Jomo.
Jomo was reacting to allegations that the ship’s crew could have done more to prevent a possible suicide at sea.
Rolando Punzalan Jr. of the Cebu Coast Guard said his office received the report of a missing passenger on June 13 at about 9 a.m. and immediately began a search and rescue mission.
He said the Camotes Detachment checked the shoreline of Camotes Island because the direction of the sea current was going to the northern island.
One motorbanca with two Coast Guard personnel swept the area from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. of Wedensday then resumed the search from 10:30 a.m. to 3 pm. of Thursday and 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. of Friday in the shorelines of Camotes but found no sign of her.
If a passenger falls from a ship or jumps overboard, the ship has to follow guidelines of a “safety management system” approved by Marina, he said.
A fellow passenger, Remy Bation, a drilling company supervisor, said he boarded the same vessel from Cebu and June 12 and noticed the woman crying.
When Bation boarded another ship going back to Cebu, he and other passengers rushed to assist a woman who was agitated and shouting around 11 p.m.
“Basin g-iurom. Pag-tanaw nako, mao man diay ning bayhana nga ako nakasakay padung.”
Bation said he and fellow passengers called the attention of the ship’s rew, afraid she might jump overboard.
Three ship apprentices initially guarded the woman, he said.
About 4 a.m., when Bation went to the comfort room, he noticed the woman was no longer in her cot and that only one apprentice was around.
“I saw her sandals and bag left behind. I asked the fellow where she was. He said she may have gone to the comfort room. I pointed out that her bag and sandals were still there,” said Bation in Cebuano.
The victim was described by her sister as a “serious” and “silent” woman.
“There was nothing in her words about suicide. She was not a violent person,” said her elder sister.
Enas was identified by her ring as a member of the Philippine Benevolent Missionairy Association (PBMA), a Surigao-based religious group. Teves said their late father was a PBMA member but that the rest of the family were Catholics.
Teves said the family still has to verify an unconfirmed report that some passengers saw Enas jump off the ship around 12 a.m. last June 14.
Teves said she was in touch with a Police Insp. Almirante assigned in Badian town, who earlier alerted a ship crew member to keep an eye on Enas because the woman was acting agitated.
Jose Cabatingan, Marina 7 spokesman, said he assigned a safety vessel engineer to conduct an investigation based on the marine protest filed by the ship master. The inquiry started last Monday.
Asked about the protocol of dealing with a passenger who falls into the sea or goes overboard, he said “Every shipping line has a different safety management system. It’s not exactly the same.”
Cokaliong chief executive officer Chester Cokaliong, in an earlier statement, said he was willing to give the family P50,000 as assistance for a decent burial even though the company was not under obligation to do so.
Teves yesterday said a family representative went to the shipping office to set an appointment. With Correspondent Katreena Bisnar
