Sulpicio blames Pagasa for ‘Princess’ tragedy

MANILA, Philippines – After earlier pointing the finger to the Philippine Coast Guard, shipping company Sulpicio Lines Inc on Friday also blamed state weather forecasters for the tragedy that befell MV Princess of the Stars, which capsized off Romblon's coast over the weekend. News reporter Jun Veneracion said in a GMA Flash Report that lawyers from the shipping lines blamed the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) during the resumption of the investigation by the Board of Marine Inquiry in Manila. During the inquiry, the Sulpicio Lines presented as its witness, Nestor Ponteres, Sulpicio's port captain in Cebu City who claimed that the shipping company was informed six hours late by Pagasa regarding typhoon Frank's changing course on June 21. Ponteres said he was in constant communication with the capsized ship's missing captain, Florencio Marimon Sr, before the accident happened last Saturday. In a mobile phone conversation about Saturday noon, Marimon allegedly told Ponteres he was getting "confused" by Pagasa's belated warning. Ponteres added that their company has alternate routes that MV Princess of the Stars could have taken had the warning been relayed earlier. The Cebu port captain also belied accusations that Marimon erred, adding that he was "the best master we have." The television report said that the second day of hearing is expected to go on until later in the day since Sulpicio Lines said it still has seven more witnesses to present before the investigating body. For his part, Pagasa director Prisco Nilo told GMA News in a separate report that while predicting the behavior of a typhoon cannot always be precise, they make sure to release weather updates to the public. "Anywhere you go, the warnings and the bulletins are updated a number of times in a day, usually four times a day taking into consideration that (weather) forecasting is not an exact science," Nilo said. He added that shipping companies also have the responsibility to closely monitor the weather condition when deploying vessels to ensure a safe voyage. During the first day of the BMI hearing on Wednesday, Sulpicio officials blamed the Philippine Coast Guard, saying the government agency is tasked to plot routes for vessels during a bad weather, as cited in a 1998 memorandum circular. The BMI had said, however, that an updated memorandum circular on June 2007 placed responsibility on the ship's owner and captain. In Wednesday's hearing, the investigating body had found out that the Sulpicio Lines has been using an outdated set of guidelines when sending off vessels during inclement weather. - Mark Merueñas, GMANews.TV