A court has issues a hold departure order to prevent all 20 crewmen of MV Vienna Wood from leaving the Philippines, while facing criminal complaints over its collision with sunken FV Liberty 5.
According to local media, while only seven of the crewmen were included in the criminal complaint for reckless imprudence that caused ‘multiple homicide and damage to property’, the hold departure order (HDO) covered all crewmen and officers of the foreign vessel.
According to Balilo, the Philippines Coast Guard legal team impleaded only seven crewmen for the HDO but the owner of the sunken FV Liberty 5, filed an HDO for 20 crew members of MV Vienna Wood.
Australia-bound MV Vienna Wood collided with FV Liberty 5, while it was on its way to Navotas, off Mamburao on June 27 because of poor visibility due to heavy downpour in the area and rough seas.
Findings indicate that FV Liberty 5 took successive hits from the bulk carrier before it capsized and eventually sank. No one from the 14 fishermen survived.
In addition, investigators report that MV Vienna Wood stayed in the area after the collision, but did not manage to launch a rescue operation for the fishermen. According to the captain, such a mission was not possible due to poor visibility and rough seas. However, he denied committing a hit-and-run. He explains that they maneuvered away from the capsized boat to maintain a safe distance.
