Operators of the motorized bancas that figured in separate sea mishaps off the coast of Sagay and San Carlos cities in Negros Occidental Sunday are now in hot water for the unauthorized transport of passengers.
Coast Guard Commander Joe Luviz Mercurio said that the owners of the chartered boats are liable for the incident since they are not authorized to transport passengers.
They were operating as “colorums”, which is in violation of the law, he said.
PCG investigations showed that the motorized boat that capsized off the coast of Sipaway Island was only allowed to operate as a service boat and not to ferry passengers.
Mercurio said he already instructed the commanders of the PCG substations in the cities of Sagay, Escalante, and San Carlos to require the concerned boat operators to submit their notarized affidavits.
A total of 56 persons were rescued after the motorized boats they were riding capsized off the coast of Sipaway Island in San Carlos City, and Molocaboc Island in Sagay City.
Of the total persons rescued, 46 were retrieved in Sagay and 10 in San Carlos City, PCG records show.
Mercurio said that no one was killed or seriously hurt in these sea mishaps, although some of the victims were brought to a hospital in Sagay City for long exposure in the cold water.
He added that the three motorboats that capsized encountered a rain squall, due to local thunderstorms in those areas.
The 46 persons rescued off the coast of Sagay City are members of the Negros Brotherhood Riders Club, who chartered five motorboats in going to Molocaboc Island from a port in Brgy. Cervantes, Escalante City, PCG report showed.
Two of the five motorboats sank after their outriggers were battered and destroyed by big waves, while the three other motorboats managed to return safely to a port in Brgy. Cervantes, Escalante City, after rescuing some of the victims, Mercurio said.
The 14 others, who were clinging for safety on the capsized motorboats, were later retrieved from the water, and 10 others were left on a sand bar by responding personnel of the Sagay City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office and Coast Guard sub-stations in Sagay City and Escalante City./GB
