Mourning mother calls for justice after Philippine boat disaster
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Parents Glenda and Domingo Aparentado mourn over the casket of their daughter who died in the capsized passenger boat.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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MANILA – Parents Domingo and Glenda Aparentado stood side by side in their crowded living room on Friday, saying their last goodbye to their 24-year-old daughter Denice, who was among 27 people killed when a ferry capsized near the Philippine capital.
“I carried her for nine months in my womb and raised her,” said Mrs Aparentado next to the coffin, which had been brought to their house in the coastal town of Binangonan before the funeral.
“I want there to be justice, I want to know who should be held accountable for what happened.”
Ms Denice Aparentado was travelling home after work when fierce winds fanned by Typhoon Doksuri hit the boat on Laguna Lake early on Thursday afternoon.
The coast guard said the passengers panicked and moved to one side of the vessel before it flipped over. The authorities have promised to probe the disaster and find out how many people were on board.
Mr Aparentado said he rushed to the scene as soon as he heard the news and found his daughter’s body in the water. “I tried everything I could, but she died.”
Added his wife: “According to the survivors, the boat was overloaded with passengers. In this kind of situation, the coast guard shouldn’t allow travel when there are strong gusts of wind.”
The couple stroked the sides of the casket and adjusted a photo showing their daughter smiling in academic robes. Relatives and friends packed the living room, kitchen and bedroom next door.
Ms Denice Aparentado was travelling home after work when fierce winds fanned by Typhoon Doksuri hit the boat on Laguna Lake.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Across the area, similar scenes played out as the Philippines took in the news of its second-worst boating disaster in 2023. Thirty-three people died in a ferry fire in the south in March.
At the lake, divers searched for any more passengers who might be trapped under the vessel. But the seven-hour operation yielded nothing, the coast guard said.
“We have called for investigation already, including on our personnel,” coast guard spokesman Armand Balilo told CNN Philippines television. REUTERS
