Julia Christine Botin

Capsized ship in Occidental Mindoro may have had 'unauthorized' crew members, says maritime agency

Article (news)

Dennis Datu

ABS-CBN News

<p>OCCIDENTAL MINDORO — There may have been crew members aboard the MV Hong Hai 16 who were not registered with the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) when the vessel capsized near Rizal, Occidental Mindoro, an official said Monday.</p><p>The Philippine Coast Guard reported that there were 25 crew members in total on board the MV Hong Hai 16 — based on the number of survivors, fatalities, and those still missing — which does not match the official record of 20 registered crew members. </p><p>&quot;Nagpasakay po sila ng hindi po authorized, &#x27;yung lima po siguro. Sa record po namin ay 20 lang po &#x27;yan dapat,&quot; MARINA Region 5 Director Atty. Bong Bañares said.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/regions/2025/4/20/death-toll-of-ill-fated-mv-hong-hai-16-now-at-9-recovery-ops-on-going-2102">Death toll of ill-fated MV Hong Hai 16 now at 9; recovery ops ongoing</a></div><p>Based on the vessel&#x27;s Safe Manning Certificate, the official number of crew members of MV Hong Hai 16 should only be 10, five for the deck and five for the engine room, all of whom are Filipino, he said.</p><p>&quot;Under our law hindi po puwedeng magkaroon ng crew ang Philippine vessel ng foreigner, &#x27;yung 5 na crew sa deck at 5 crew sa engine, Filipino po lahat &#x27;yan,&quot; Bañares said.</p><p>He added that the ship owner had applied for additional 10 ancillary members, who perform special roles on board the ship that are not related to the vessel&#x27;s safety operations.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="http://Wife of missing safety officer of MV Hong Hai 16 still hoping he will be found">Wife of missing safety officer of MV Hong Hai 16 still hoping he will be found</a></div><p>According to MARINA, the ancillary crew were possibly the Chinese nationals whose job on MV Hong Hai 16 was solely to operate the equipment used in dredging operations. </p><p>Bañares said ancillary crew members were probably the ones operating the specialized equipment inside MV Hong Hai 16, which he noted is a special vessel and contains equipment or apparatus that can only be operated by expert personnel.</p><p>He meanwhile assured that MV Hong Hai 16, owned by Keen Peak Corporation, was fully documented and registered with MARINA Region 5. </p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/regions/2025/4/19/occidental-mindoro-to-halt-dredging-firm-s-operations-over-capsized-sand-carrier-1022">Occidental Mindoro to halt dredging firm&#x27;s operations over capsized sand carrier</a></div><p>He also said that MARINA had inspected the vessel just two weeks before the incident occurred, as the company was already applying for the renewal of its safety certificate, which is set to expire on April 28, 2025.</p><p>Bañares clarified that MV Hong Hai 16 had a permit to travel to Occidental Mindoro. </p><p>&quot;They can go anywhere dahil mayroon po silang permit to travel,&quot; he said.</p><p>MARINA has already issued a show cause order to the owner of MV Hong Hai 16.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO</strong><br/><br/><strong><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hQzcirPNm3Y?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span></strong></div>

<p>There may have been crew members aboard the MV Hong Hai 16 who were not registered with the Maritime Industry Authority when the vessel capsized near Rizal, Occidental Mindoro, an official said Monday.</p>

There may have been crew members aboard the MV Hong Hai 16 who were not registered with the Maritime Industry Authority when the vessel capsized near Rizal, Occidental Mindoro, an official said Monday.