THE owner of the fishing boat that caught fire while sailing in the waters off Naga City, southern Cebu on Wednesday evening, June 5, 2024, was involved with colorum operations, making it ineligible for a marine protest, an official of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) Cebu said.
Petty Officer First Class Joel Baring of the PCG substation in the City of Naga, in an interview on Thursday, June 6, said the fishing boat, King Bryan, lacks a permit to operate and thus cannot be suspended by the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina).
A marine protest is a declaration on oath by the vessel’s master “of the circumstances attending the damage or loss of his vessel, intended to show that the loss occurred by the perils of the sea, and concluding with a protestation against any liability of the owner to the freighters.”
The fishing vessel caught fire in the waters off the City of Naga around 8 p.m. on Wednesday, killing six of the 12 crew members, all from Masbate.
Baring said the bodies of six crew members of the King Bryan fishing boat have already been retrieved.
The fatalities were identified as Boyboy Bacolod, 29; Ariel Codilla, 37; Jonathan Sullano, 34; Onjing Conel, 41; Dominic Cleret, 18; and Joseph Sullano.
The remaining six crew members were rescued, namely, Alvin Quiñones, 21; John Cloud Canones, 20; Alan Aviles, 18; Michael Bacas, 34; Miguel Cortes, 32; and boat captain Mark Anthony Sullano.
Three of the survivors are currently confined at the Cebu South General Hospital, while the three other survivors were brought to the Coast Guard Sub-Station Naga for investigation.
According to Baring, based on the initial investigation, a secondary engine that allegedly exploded caused the fire.
Authorities are still identifying the owners of the vessel.
According to Marina Circulars, sea vessels operating without the required permits will be sanctioned with a fine ranging from P10,000 to P100,000 depending on the size of the vessel.
Baring said the penalty of the vessel depends upon the category to which it belongs in accordance with the Marina circular. In the King Bryan’s case, Baring believed it belonged to the fishing category.
He said they will finish towing the wreckage of the fishing banca on Thursday. / JPS, DVG, TPT