Ship victims’ kin not keen on pursuing case
It’s been more than a year but the families of the passengers who went missing in the collision of two vessels off Lawis Ledge, Talisay City are reluctant to file charges against the ship owners.
“I cannot do anything about that. Even if I file a case, even if I crush them my family won’t be brought back,” said Eduard Libanon, whose wife and two children remain unaccounted for.
The Special Board of Marine Inquiry (SBMI) found 2GO Group Inc. which owns MV St. Thomas Aquinas and Philippine Span Asia Carrier Corp. (PSAC), owner of Sulpicio Express Siete liable for the deaths of more than 100 passengers.
In its report, the board also found them liable for the resulting oil spill that damaged Cordova town’s coastline and affected the livelihood of the municipality’s fisherfolk.
“For now, I’ll prioritize looking for my family. I’ve been searching for them for over a year now and I still haven’t found them,” Libanon said. He said he’s been waiting for the DNA results from the PNP crime lab.
Insurance
Libanon’s wife Realyn and their two children were headed back to Manila from Nasipit, Agusan del Norte when the collision occurred last Aug. 16, 2013. He said the families organized a group to pursue their case.
Libanon said he and the rest of the families were not informed about the results of the SBMI investigation. Libanon also received nearly P1 million in insurance coverage last year.
“I don’t know what to do with the money because I lost my family,¨he said. Libanon went to Cebu twice last year after the ship collision but has no plans to come back until he knows of his family’s fate.
Salvaged
Charmie Yee is also looking for her five-year old son Arkhi Gian.
A native of Golden Ribbon in Butuan City, she is working in Cebu City. She said she didn’t know about the SBMI investigation.
Yee’s mother and her five-year old son Arkhi were headed to Cebu when the accident occurred. Arkhi got separated from his grandmother who survived the sinking.
A year after the sea tragedy, the MV St. Thomas Aquinas has yet to be salvaged from Lawis Ledge.
2GO Group Inc. said it won’t salvage the vessel because it doesn’t pose a threat to vessels passing through the area.
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