LITE FERRY16

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Investigations agains Lite Shipping Co. for wrong passenger manifests

The Philippine Coast Guard issued an enforcement inspection apprehension report against the Lite Shipping Corporation, shipping company of the "Lite Ferry 16", for violating the policy on passenger's manifest. The PCG Memorandum Circular number 05-2012 requires the submission of a master's declaration of Safe Departure (MDSD), which includes the list of passengers on board. The first manifest released initially declared that the vessel was only carrying 180 passengers and 38 crew members, then it was updated to 239 passengers, but the actual number of passengers and crew members that were on board was said to be 245. Everyone has been accounted for, including the four who passed away due to the fire. The nine who were not in the manifest were considered non-paying passengers such as drivers or helpers carrying cargoes. The operators may face sanctions if proven guilty of the violation. After the wreck was towed to the port of Plaridel in Misamis Occidental, the Philippine Coast Guard laid put a containment boom for precautionary measures as they planned to extract the 19 tons diesel fuel from the vessel to avoid any oil spill. The National Bureau of Investigation will start investigating what caused the fire. Although initial reports, stated that the fire began in the engine room, Lite Shipping Corporation stated that the vessel's engines were new and in excellent condition as it was drydocked for maintenance and retrofitting.

Ferry towed to Plaridel

On Aug 29 the "Lite Ferry 16" was towed to the port of Plaridel in Misamis Occidental, where the wereck will be inspected. The Philippine Coast Guard laid out a containment boom as a precautionary measure as they planned to extract the 19 tons of fuel from the vessel to avoid any oil spill. The National Bureau of Investigation will also investigate the cause of the fire which started in the engine room. The Lite Shipping Corporation stated that the engines were new and had been in excellent condition as the ferry was dry docked for maintenance and retrofitting short time ago. The SAR operation was stopped on Aug 28 after the rescuers had accounted for the 23 crew members, and none of the 245 rescued passengers were still looking for relatives. The Coast Guard had said only 136 passengers were on the ship’s manifest, but 201 passengers were on the list sent by officials of Samboan Port in Cebu, where the ferry came from. The vessel owner Danilo Lines and Lite Holdings Inc. could face sanctions after it failed to provide a proper manifest of passengers before it sailed from Samboan, Cebu to Dapitan City, Zamboanga del Norte.

245 passengers and 16 crew members rescued, 22 unaccounted for

At least 245 passengers and 16 crew members were rescued from the "Lite Ferry 16", while 22 others remained unaccounted for as of 8 p.m. on Aug 28, according to the Philippine Coast Guard in Dapitan City. The number did not include the three persons who died when the ferry caught fire shortly before 1 a.m. about 1.5 miles from Dapitan, its port of destination. The PCG-Dapitan report showed a higher count of passengers on board the ill-fated ferry in the wake of the pronouncement of the officials of the Lite Shipping Corporation who in the afternoon, said that there were only 180 persons aboard the vessel when it departed from Samboan town past 6 p.m. on Aug 27. The company’s count included the three persons who died in the sea tragedy. The PCG in Central Visayas assured that the ship was not overloaded and passed the pre-departure inspection since the ferry’s passenger maximum capacity was 317, including the crew. The 22 unaccounted persons were believed to be crew members since the ferry had a crew of 38 crew, and only 16 were so far named in the listed as among the survivors. The PCG Dapitan did not confirm if the remaining 22 other members were considered missing as its investigation was still ongoing and the numbers were still subject to verification. The PCG-Dapitan also claimed that there was no delay in responding to the distressed vessel. When the "Lite Ferry 16" raised their alarm of concern at around 11 p.m., the PCG-Dapitan immediately informed all the surrounding ports in the area about the distressed vessel. The Coast Guard vessel of Dapitan was stationed in Cagayan De Oro City when the alarm was raised. While the PCG vessel was still on its way to the area of incident, they already asked other nearby ports to send available vessels for rescue. There were at least three commercial vessels which headed towards the area, with PCG-Dapitan personnel on board, to assist in the rescue operation. The Lite Shipping corporation announced that they will be giving monetary support to all the passengers. Report with photo: https://cebudailynews.inquirer.net/254422/pcg-says-3-dead-245-rescued-22-unaccounted-for-in-dapitan-sea-mishap#ixzz5xyjEXwVO