Philippine investigators opened an inquiry on Wednesday into a ferry disaster believed to have killed 800 as rescuers ended slim hopes of finding survivors in the stricken vessel.
More than 100 US and Filipino divers combed the wreckage of the 24 000-tonne Princess of the Stars, whose upturned bow remained jutting above waters off the the central island of Sibuyan after it capsized in a typhoon on Saturday.
”There are no signs of life,” navy spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Edgard Arevalo said. Rescuers said anyone who had managed to find air pockets in the ship would have suffocated by now.
Only 57 people survived the tragedy, according to civil defence figures, out of more than 850 people on board, making it one of the worst maritime disasters in the South-east Asian country’s history.
President Gloria Arroyo in a statement from Washington, where she is on an official visit, said: ”We are holding the ferry company accountable.”
She said in a statement that the inquiry will try to determine how the tragedy occurred ”so we can take steps to make sure it never happens again.”
Coastguard spokesperson Lieutenant Commander Armand Balilo said ferry operator Sulpicio Lines, as well as maritime experts, have been summoned to the inquiry, which aims to determine whether the ship was seaworthy and why it was allowed to leave port during a typhoon.
”This board of marine inquiry is a fact-finding investigation,” he said, adding that details gathered could be used for a criminal prosecution if needed.
”Early this morning during first light we continued our diving operations,” said Lieutenant Commander Rogelio Villanueva, who briefed disaster relief officials in Manila.
He said the divers hoped to penetrate deeper into the ship’s dining hall and other compartments, where divers had seen many bloated bodies.
Navy ships as well as a helicopter meanwhile were scouring coastal areas where some bodies could have washed up.
”We are racing against time to save lives and retrieve bodies as soon as possible before they reach an advanced state of decomposition,” he said.
He said three more bodies were recovered Wednesday, bringing the toll from the ship to 70 with 48 survivors, according to navy figures.
More than 700 others were still unaccounted for.
United States divers joined the grim search for the bloated bodies of men, women and children who were on the 22-hour trip from Manila to central Cebu when Typhoon Fengshen struck.
With poor visibility and strong undercurrents hampering the operation, officials appealed for more equipment from abroad as well as relief goods for survivors of the typhoon, which left another 600 dead or missing countrywide.
Anthony Golez, a spokesperson for President Arroyo, said the government welcomed any aid from international donors.
”Offers of aid are continuing to come in,” he said over local radio.
Arroyo secured a pledge from United States counterpart George Bush to send an aircraft carrier, the USS Ronald Reagan, and other naval assets to help with the relief efforts.
”This is a time where America needs to step up, and we will,” Bush said as they met in the Oval Office. ”We are happy to do it, we want to help our friends in a time of need.”
Meanwhile, grieving relatives continued to stream to the offices of Sulpicio Lines demanding to know the fate of their loved ones.
Many are inconsolable, but there have also been tearful reunions for the lucky few who survived the tragedy.