27 Aug 13 - 10:20
TransAsia captain says
The cargo ship that collided with a passenger ship in Cebu on August 16 was in the wrong lane, the captain of a third ship told the Special Board of Marine Inquiry (SBMI), which is conducting an investigation on the accident, according to GMA News, Carmela G. Lapeña/RSJ.
"Captain Galipher Ian Faller, vessel master of Trans Asia Nine, supported the report of 2GO skipper Captain Reynan Bermejo that M/V Sulpicio Express Siete was on the inbound lane contradicting the statement of Captain Rolito Gilo of Sulpicio," 2Go Group, the operator of the sunken ship, said in a statement. MV St. Thomas Aquinas sank within minutes of colliding with MV Sulpicio Express Siete at around 9 p.m. on August 16. The death toll rose to 81, while 39 remain missing.
TransAsia Nine Captain Galipher Ian Faller confirmed that the outgoing Sulpicio used the inbound lane, prompting his decision to overtake on its starboard (right side of the ship), they said.
TransAsia, which was in the area when the accident happened, was called to the hearing by SBMI for failure to respond to the distress call.
2Go said Faller also contradicted Sulpicio's claim that MV St. Thomas Aquinas 1 was on red signal. "Gilo said since M/V St. Thomas Aquinas was showing a red light, he thought the passenger vessel would turn to its right side," 2GO said.
According to Bermejo, at 8:23 p.m. the MV St. Thomas Aquinas detected on its radar an outbound vessel from the port of Cebu entering their inbound lane. Bermejo said the MV St. Thomas Aquinas radioed the vessel, but received no response from Sulpicio.
M/V Thomas Aquinas was traveling at around 15 knots and was a mile away from the Sulpicio Express, 2Go said. With .7 knots between the ships, Aquinas veered to the left, while Sulpicio veered to the right. By the time Aquinas veered toward the opposite direction, it was too late.
Bermejo explained that it takes around eight minutes for them to stop the propeller of the ship completely because the ship runs on a fixed-propeller system.
Before the collision, Faller said that M/V Sulpicio Express Siete asked them to shift to Channel 12, 2GO said. Communication of ships should be in the official marine operations frequency of Channel 16 as indicated in the rules, according to Director Arnie Santiago of the Maritime Industry Authority. Faller explained that since there was interference in channel 16, he communicated with Sulpicio Express Siete and replied to a request to change radio channel to channel 12.
The investigation, which began on August 23, is expected to be completed within two weeks, as ordered by President Benigno Aquino III.
Image Credit: GMA News
