By Priam F. Nepomuceno
MANILA, July 5 (PNA) — Search-and-retrieval operations are still being conducted for the missing passengers of the M/V Kim Nirvana-B sinking which took place off Ormoc Thursday afternoon.
This was revealed by Coast Guard District Eastern Visayas head Capt. Pedro Tinampay Sunday.
He added that another two bloated bodies were recovered by rescue units Saturday, increasing the death toll to 61.
However, Tinampay said that this figure is still being double-checked and validated for accuracy.
The Coast Guard officer added that they are being aided in this task by police Scene-of-the-Crime-Operatives to determine if the recovered bodies are indeed passengers from the sunken boat.
As this develops, he disclosed that the BRP Batangas (SARV-004), a 700-gross ton Coast Guard vessel, has already transported the victims and survivors of the mishap to Camotes Island before 10 or 11 a.m.
The ship carried 45 bodies, 110 survivors, and another 171 relatives of the victims and surviving passengers. (PNA)