THE Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) and Basilan Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) have concluded the search and retrieval operation on the wreckage of the commercial ferry that caught fire on the evening of Wednesday, March 29, 2023.

Zamboanga City First District Representative Khymer Olaso said the search and retrieval operations ended Saturday, April 1, as the BFP and PDRRMO personnel have no longer found any remains at the boat’s wreckage.

Olaso was a former executive of the Aleson Shipping Lines that owns M/V Lady Mary Joy 3. He is married to Mary Joy, the daughter of the shipping firm’s owner.

“They have not found any cadaver, so they decided to conclude the search and retrieval operation to give way to the other teams to inspect the wreckage of the vessel,” Olaso said.

On Saturday, April 1, Olaso went to Baluk-Baluk Island, Hadji Muhtamad, Basilan, where the wreckage of M/V Lady Mary Joy 3 is located.

M/V Lady Mary Joy 3 caught fire around 11:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 29, near Baluk-Baluk Island while navigating to Jolo, Sulu coming from Zamboanga City.

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said there were 29 fatalities and 216 survivors as of the latest court.

The PCG District in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao said that seven of the 252 people aboard the vessel at the time of the incident remain missing.

Of the 252, they include 205 passengers, 35 crewmen, eight Army, and four PCG personnel. (SunStar Zamboanga)