FILE PHOTO: A cluster of life rafts floats near the cargo ship Sulpicio Express Siete Saturday Aug. 17, 2013, a day after it collided with a passenger ferry off the waters of Talisay city, Cebu province in central Philippines. AP
Nearly 10 months after the ferry MV St. Thomas Aquinas sunk after colliding with a cargo vessel off Lawis Ledge in Talisay City, 2GO Shipping, remains defiant of orders to salvage the ill-fated ship.
“We also reiterated our position to them to remove their sunken vessel. We told them about that last week and they submitted a letter about their position on the issue,” Commo. William Melad, district commander of the Philippine Coast Guard, said.
In a meeting last week, Melad said 2GO Shipping representatives said the whole south entrance of the Mactan Channel will have to be closed to sea traffic to allow salvors to work unimpeded.
They also insist that there is no need to salvage the sunken ship as it does not pose a threat to navigation.
“Our argument during the meeting was it doesn’t impose risk at present, but in the future it will be a risk to navigation,” he said.
Navigation
Melad cited an earlier statement by PCG Central Visayas District chief of staff, Cmdr. Weniel Azcuna, that the salvaging of the MV St. Thomas Aquinas won’t hamper navigation and vessel traffic flow at the south entrance of the Mactan channel.
Future natural calamities, however, can cause the container vans in the ships hold to float to the surface, Melad said.
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) also previously recommended that the vessel be salvaged since it sank near two coral reefs which would be affected if the ship is buffeted by strong waves.
Lito Salvio and Boy Mundo,vice president and general manager respectively of 2GO Shipping, did not return calls when Cebu Daily News sought them out to comment on the coast guard’s claim.
Updates
Last week’s meeting between the coast guard and 2GO representatives was also attended by representatives of the London Offshore Consultation (LOC) Pte. Ltd, the insurer of 2GO Shipping.
Melad said they are providing updates to their central office about the MV St. Thomas Aquinas which sank in waters more than 50 meters deep after the Aug. 16 collision last year.
About 733 persons survived the collision between the MV St. Thomas Aquinas and the MV Sulpicio Express Siete, a freighter owned by the Philippine Span Carriers Corp. (formerly known as Sulpicio Lines Inc.) near Lawis Ledge in Talisay City.
The MV St. Thomas Aquinas was en route to Cebu City from Nasipit, Agusan del Norte and carried 870 passengers and crew. Divers retrieved 72 bodies from the Aquinas while 44 others were recovered from other areas.