THE trip was meant to unite two families.
Romeo Baguio Jr., a resident of Barangay Ermita, Cebu City, was on his way to Guimaras Province so he could ask for Maria Nieves Grandeza’s hand in marriage on Saturday, Aug. 3, 2019.
The couple brought along their three-year-old son Jay Arvien and Romeo’s parents, Romeo Sr. and Angelina. They were accompanied by Romeo Jr.’s relatives Romnel, Dannylyn Alima and Dannelle Baguio and Bernardo and Jared Janson from Cebu City.
The passenger boat they were riding was one of three motorized bancas that capsized in the Iloilo-Guimaras Strait that day.
The first incident involved mv Chi-Chi, which left Guimaras for Iloilo around 12:30 p.m.
The boat was carrying four crew and 47 passengers.
The Western Visayas Police Regional Office said 12 of those on board died.
The second incident involved mb Kezia, which was bound for Guimaras from Iloilo. All its passengers and crew members survived.
The third incident happened around 3 p.m. when mb Jenny Vince, which was carrying five crew and 39 passengers, capsized.
Thirteen passengers, including a minor, were killed, while six others were still missing.
However, it was not determined which boat the Baguios had taken.
Ermita Barangay Captain Mark Miral said everybody in the group except Romeo Sr. and Jared had been accounted for. Grandeza was the lone survivor.
The wake will be held at the barangay’s sports complex.
Romnel Baguio, Romeo Jr.’s brother, told Superbalita Cebu that his family wanted him to go with them but he turned them down.
Romnel said it was Grandeza’s sibling who called to inform them about the tragedy that befell his and the Janson family.
Mayor Edgardo Labella went to the barangay when Miral told him about the news.
Labella said he would coordinate with Presidential Assistant for the Visayas Michael Dino to arrange the transport of the victims’ bodies.
He requested a C-130 plane to bring them all back to Cebu.
The mayor said the City Government will also extend assistance to the Baguio and Janson families.
The Office of the Civil Defense in Western Visayas reported that as of 5:30 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 4, 27 people were confirmed dead, while six others were still missing.
At least 53 people survived.
Police said rescue and retrieval operations for the missing victims were ongoing as of Sunday afternoon.
Local authorities blamed the bad weather for the incidents.
Iloilo City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office Director Donna Magno said they were still investigating why the boats were allowed to sail.
“After the first incident, there was a cancellation of trips kaya nagulat kami nung dumating sa amin na may (that’s why we were surprised to learn about the) second incident,” said Magno.
The weather bureau Pagasa earlier said several regions in the southern and eastern part of the country would be affected by the trough of the low pressure area spotted in northern Luzon.
In Cebu, 11 sea trips were canceled as of 4 p.m. Sunday as Pagasa raised a gale warning over the entire Visayas in the morning.
Affected were vessels bound for Tubigon and Tagbilaran, Bohol and vice versa.
However, there were no reports of passengers getting stranded in Cebu.
Pagasa 7 Chief Al Quiblat said the cancellation was due to the unfavorable weather condition brought by the southwest monsoon.
“As of our latest weather forecast, the tropical depression Hanna already developed into a tropical storm with (maximum winds of) 65 kilometers per hour (km/h) and (gustiness of up to) 80 km/h. However, it has no direct effect and we are not seeing any scenario of its landfall. What we are checking is the movement of the habagat (southwest monsoon),” he said.
“The wave height is dangerous. It could be at 2.8 to 4.5 meters,” he said.
Due to the southwest monsoon, he said, areas in Western Visayas, including portions of Negros Occidental and Panay Island, can expect moderate to heavy scattered rains on Monday, Aug. 5, while Central Visayas and Eastern Visayas can expect light to moderate isolated rains until Thursday, Aug. 8.
Quiblat said the monsoon is expected to weaken as tropical storm Hanna is expected to leave the Philippine Area of Responsibility on Friday, Aug. 9. (FROM PAC OF SUPERBALITA CEBU / PJB, WBS, SUNSTAR PHILIPPINES)