6th fatality in Palawan boat sinking found — official

The death toll from the sinking of a passenger-cargo vessel that encountered big waves in Palawan before midnight Tuesday rose to six Thursday noon, officials involved in the search and rescue operations said. Commodore Alexander Lopez, head of Task Force Malampaya, said Thursday afternoon the sixth fatality's body was found off Helicopter Island in the El Nido area. "Before lunch, meron tayong nakita, unfortunately patay na siya. Kaya umakyat ang bilang ng patay sa anim," Lopez said in an interview on dzBB radio. He said at least four more are still missing from the sinking of the MV Josille II, and are now the subjects of search-and-rescue operations. MV Josille II sank after encountering big waves off Palawan before midnight Tuesday. Its manifest had 34 passengers and 12 crew, but Lopez indicated there were at least 66 aboard at the time it sank. So far, Lopez said 56 people were rescued, while six were dead and four still missing. An earlier report by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) identified the five fatalities as Jeccamae Estarija, Pamela Anne Clariza, Nita Huyo-A, Severino Eliseo, and John Aldrin Atienza. Eliseo and Atienza were part of the ship's crew. It identified the missing as Juanito Tito, Jolito Buenafe, Mark Angelo Esmeria, Nora Cortez and one Antonia. Boat owners helping in search Lopez said local boat owners in El Nido have joined the search for survivors. He said authorities have divided the area into sectors, one each for the Navy, Coast Guard and private boat owners. "Bayanihan concept kami... para mas maraming ma-cover na area in a shorter time," he said. On the other hand, Lopez said they are monitoring the area where the vessel sank for oil spills. Lopez also said the vessel's owner, Atienza Shipping, may face sanctions even if the vessel were not overloaded. "The ship was designed to carry 150 people. Even if it were not overloaded, the owner may face sanctions because many passengers were not on the manifest," he said. On the other hand, he said the shipping company has been "cooperative" in the search operations by providing logistics. "Alam nila malaki responsibility tumutulong din sila in terms of logistics," he said. — LBG, GMA News