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The death toll from the ferry that capsized Thursday has now climbed to 56. Photo: AFP
Philippine police have filed murder charges against the owner and crew of a passenger ferry that capsized and left 56 dead, an official said Saturday.
The charges were filed late on Friday in the central city of Ormoc over the sinking of the Kim Nirvana ship, according to regional police head Chief Superintendent Asher Dolina.
An initial police investigation and interviews with survivors showed the vessel abruptly turned in waters off the central port of Ormoc on Thursday, causing it to capsize, Dolina told AFP.
“They were not careful, showing there was an intent to kill. They were reckless on purpose,” Dolina said.
A total of 19 people were charged, including ship operator Joge Bong Zarco, captain Warren Oliviero, and 17 crew members, according to Dolina.
Under Philippine law, murder is punishable by up to 40 years' imprisonment.
The police investigation is separate from a coast guard inquiry, which will primarily determine the cause of the mishap.
However, the coast guard may also recommend criminal and administrative charges.
“We filed the charges as soon as we could because we don’t want the suspects to leave the country,” Dolina said.
Fifty-six people were confirmed dead from the sinking, Ormoc city councillor Godiardo Ebcas told AFP.
Overloading of cargo and passengers might have been to blame for the disaster, according to Ebcas, who helped oversee rescue operations.
Survivors reported seeing up to 150 sacks of cement and more of rice and fertiliser in the ship’s cargo area before it capsized in relatively calm seas, he said.
Bloated bodies spilled out of the Kim Nirvana’s wooden hull as a crane lifted it from the water and placed it on Ormoc port, Ebcas added.
The city councillor said the death toll stood at 56 with 142 survivors. His toll was higher than the 45 reported by the coast guard, which was based on the ship’s passenger list, though the guard counted the same number of survivors.
The coast guard earlier said the 33-tonne ship could carry 194 people including 178 passengers and 16 crew, but according to the casualty count of the city council, the ship was carrying at least 198.
“The ship might not be too overloaded in terms of passengers, but imagine the weight of its cargo,” Ebcas said.
Each sack of rice, cement and fertiliser weighs 50 kilos (110 pounds), and 150 sacks would easily add 7,500 kilos to the ship’s load, excluding passengers, he said.
Passengers on the ferry’s regular route from Ormoc to the Camotes islands regularly bring supplies from the city to their remote fishing villages.
Search operations with rescue divers were stopped on Friday before the ship was lifted to port’s berthing area.
Poorly maintained, loosely regulated ferries form the backbone of maritime travel in the Philippines, a sprawling archipelago of 100 million people.
Many sea disasters occur during the typhoon season, which starts in June.
Frequent accidents in recent decades have claimed thousands of lives, including the world’s worst peacetime maritime disaster in 1987 when the Dona Paz ferry collided with an oil tanker, leaving more than 4,300 dead.
Filipino rescuers bring the bodies of two dead passengers to shore in Ormoc, Leyte, in this photo provided by the Philippine Coast Guard. Photo: EPA
The death toll from the Philippines’ ferry disaster rose to 41 Friday as rescuers brought more bodies ashore to anguished families, including 10-year-old survivor Gilbert de la Cruz who wailed in despair as the corpse of his one-year-old brother was recovered.
Divers were searching for five people still missing after the Kim Nirvana carrying 173 passengers and 14 crewmen capsized as it was leaving Ormoc port in the central Philippines on Thursday.
Crowds of anxious relatives waited at the port as divers manoeuvred their inflatable boats through the choppy waters to the upturned hull of the ferry, its brightly painted orange and green bow just poking above the surface.
As De la Cruz embraced his distraught father, hopes were fading that the boy’s mother and sister could be still alive trapped in the hull.
Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya told reporters 141 survived, including all the crew, while five others were missing.
People gather around a child carried by a relative after she was rescued from the sinking ferry. Photo: AFP
Abaya said government investigators would summon the crew to determine the cause of the accident. “We will get to the bottom of this and make sure that this does not happen again,” he said.
The ship was on its regular run to the Camotes island group, about an hour’s sailing away when it capsized.
Survivors have recounted how the 33-tonne vessel was backing out of the port when it suddenly overturned, giving them no chance to put on life jackets.
De la Cruz said he survived by clinging to empty water drums that kept him afloat until the coast guard rescued him.
The 10-year-old said he was standing near the deck when it tilted, allowing him to jump into the water, but he was unable to look behind him to see if his family had also escaped.
“I’m very sad because I don’t know if they are still alive,” he said before his youngest brother’s remains were brought to shore.
“I am never riding a boat again," he said, as he was comforted by his aunt whose eyes were swollen from crying.
Nicasia Degesica, a 57-year-old seamstress, waited at the port for news of her elder sister, Erlinda Rosales, while other distraught relatives checked hospitals and morgues for their loved ones. “We’re losing hope that she is still alive, but if she’s dead at least we want to find her body,” Degesica said.
Blood seeped through one of the body bags as it was loaded into an ambulance at the port, a photographer at the scene said.
Divers briefly stopped their search in the morning as the waters became choppy due to Tropical Storm Linfa, which was set to brush past the northern Philippines today, said Chief Superintendent Asher Dolina, one of the ground commanders. Asked if they still expected to find survivors, Dolina said: “We really can’t say. Miracles can happen.”
The state weather service issued a gale alert for the central Philippines early today, warning of turbulent seas churned up by the storm.
Waves up to 4.5 metres high could overturn boats that try to leave port in these conditions, weather forecaster Gladys Saludes said.
Poorly maintained, loosely regulated ferries are the backbone of maritime travel in the sprawling archipelago of 100 million people.
Many of the ferry disasters occur during the typhoon season between June and October, when strong winds also unleash deadly floods and landslides.
The disaster-plagued Philippines is hit by about 20 typhoons and storms each year, many of them deadly.
A city councillor from the country now claims the death toll has climbed to 56, which is higher than the coast guard's estimate. Photo: AFP
Overloading of cargo and passengers might have been to blame for a Philippine ferry disaster which left dozens dead, a Philippine official said Saturday, and Manila is now investigating the matter.
Survivors reported seeing up to 150 sacks of cement in the ship’s cargo area before it capsized in relatively calm seas off the central port of Ormoc on Thursday, city councillor Godiardo Ebcas told AFP.
Bloated bodies spilled out of the Kim Nirvana’s wooden hull as a crane lifted it from the water and placed it on Ormoc port, he said.
Ebcas said the death toll stood at 56 with 142 survivors. The death count was bigger than the 45 reported by the coast guard, which was based on the ship’s passenger list, though the guard counted the same number of survivors.
The coast guard earlier said the 33-tonne ship could carry 194 people including 178 passengers and 16 crew, but according to the casualty count of the city council, the ship was carrying at least 198.
“The ship might not be too overloaded in terms of passengers, but imagine the weight of its cargo,” Ebcas said.
Each sack of rice, cement and fertiliser weighs 50 kilos (110 pounds), and 150 sacks would easily add 7,500 to the ship’s load, excluding passengers, he said.
Ebcas said survivors saw that the cargo, located on the ship’s lowest level, was not fastened to the floor with ropes as it should have been.
“This could have cause the weight of the ship to shift,” said Ebcas.
Passengers on the ferry’s regular route from Ormoc to the Camotes islands regularly bring supplies from the city to their remote fishing villages.
Search operations with rescue divers were stopped on Friday before the ship was lifted to port’s berthing area.
Ebcas confirmed reports some bodies were washed to the shore of a neighbouring municipality.
The coast guard is investigating the latest in a string of deadly sea mishaps. Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya said the ship’s crew would be summoned.
“If there was negligence, it should be pursued by investigators. Appropriate charges will be filed when necessary,” presidential spokeswoman Abigail Valte told reporters Saturday.
Poorly maintained, loosely regulated ferries form the backbone of maritime travel in the Philippines, a sprawling archipelago of 100 million people.
Many sea disasters occur during the typhoon season, which starts in June.
Frequent accidents in recent decades have claimed thousands of lives, including the world’s worst peacetime maritime disaster in 1987 when the Dona Paz ferry collided with an oil tanker, leaving more than 4,300 dead.
