Survivor of Baleno 9 asserts crew partying before accident

The skipper and crew of the MV Baleno 9 were in the middle of a party with fast-food, women, and beer when the roll-on, roll-off vessel began to sink off Batangas province a day after Christmas, one of the survivors told a Senate hearing on Thursday. "Nakita ko sa bandang kaliwa may mga babaeng kasama sila, may Jollibee sila, may beer in can (I saw they had women, Jollibee food and beer in cans)," Jonathan Umali, who was on the ship's deck at the time, testified before the Senate blue ribbon committee. Umali said he had seen the ship’s captain, Jimmy Andal, with the group. "Parang gusto niya akong paalisin (It seemed like he wanted me out of there)," he said. He added that a crew member of the ship he identified only as Banaldal confirmed to him that they had been drinking while sailing.

At least six people have been confirmed dead while 44 others remained missing when Baleno 9, owned by Besta Shipping Lines, sank near Verde Island on December 26. The government has since suspended the shipping firm's franchise. Umali’s revelation, however, was not new to committee chairman Sen. Richard Gordon, who said he had first learned about it when he went to Mindoro to help in the rescue efforts of the Philippine National Red Cross, which he also heads. Tipsy-looking crew During the hearing, Gordon showed video footage of the crew who he said looked tipsy. Maria Elena Bautista, administrator of the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina), said crew members of sea vessels are prohibited from drinking and partying while sailing, but admitted that they have no way of enforcing this. "Gusto ko nga tignan ngayon yung [pag-purchase ng] breath analyzer para mas ma-enforce pa ito at mas madaling ma-assess kung may alcohol level (I’m looking into the purchase of breath analyzers so that we can assess the crew’s alcohol level)," she told reporters after the hearing. Patrick Ang, one of the owners of Besta Shipping Lines, was present at the hearing but did not comment on Umali’s testimony. He immediately left the venue after the hearing without speaking to the media. Motion to lift Besta suspension The firm's lawyer, Arthur Lim, also declined to comment. "You will have the opportunity to hear the evidence later," he said after attending a separate Marina hearing on the incident. During the Marina hearing, Lim moved to have the suspension order lifted even for his client's cargo vessels only, saying Besta Shipping Lines is a major player in the Batangas-Calapan route. "With the suspension, the remaining shipping lines operating in the sea route will face hard times serving the high volume of cargo during this peak season," he said in a motion. — KBK/HGS/NPA, GMANews.TV