THE Philippine government expressed sadness over the death of scores of people in China after a cruise ship capsized on the famous Yangtze River earlier this week.
“The Filipino nation shares the grief of the Chinese Government and people during this difficult time,” the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) in a statement issued Thursday afternoon. “We wish our Chinese friends the grace, strength and fortitude as they conduct search and rescue operations.”
“The Filipino people hope and pray that our Chinese friends recover swiftly from this tragic incident,” it added.
Based on reports, just 14 of the 456 mostly elderly people on board the Eastern Star have so far been rescued, after the vessel overturned in bad weather on Monday.
Some of the few survivors were found trapped in air pockets inside the submerged hull of the ship.
The 76m-long, 2,200 tonne Eastern Star, named Dongfangzhixing in Chinese, overturned in the Damazhou section of the Yangtze. It did not send an emergency signal.
The captain, who survived and is now in police custody along with the chief engineer, said the vessel had been caught in what he termed a cyclone. Chinese media said meteorologists had confirmed that a “sudden, strong and violent” storm hit the area.
The ship is owned by the Chongqing Eastern Shipping Corporation, and passengers had booked their trip through a travel agency in Shanghai.
The cruise left the eastern city of Nanjing in April and was travelling to Chongqing in the south-west via the Three Gorges.
MANILA BULLETIN
