Doña Paz survivors, heirs get compensation

TACLOBAN CITY, Philippines – Around 1,500 survivors and heirs of the ill-fated M/V Doña Paz have received their claims after the Louisiana Supreme Court in the United States ruled in their favor.

The beneficiaries received checks amounting to P200,000 to P400,000 from representatives of Caltex International, MetroBank and Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. at the Tacloban Astrodome here as well as in Catbalogan City in Samar and Manila yesterday. The distribution of checks will resume today.

Caltex was the shipper of 8,800 barrels of petroleum products that M/T Vector was transporting when it collided with M/V Doña Paz off Dumali Point, along the shark-infested Tablas Strait between Marinduque and Oriental Mindoro, on its way to Manila from Leyte on Dec. 20, 1987.

A total of 4,386 people died. Only 24 survived the tragedy considered the deadliest maritime accident in history.

Most of the heirs of the victims did not accept the settlement offer of Sulpicio Lines amounting to P30,000 per victim.

The case was brought to the US court when the  Supreme Court affirmed the ruling of local courts dismissing a class suit on the ground of prescription.

The Louisiana court released its ruling last month.

Mano Francisco Tomas, 74, a resident of Dulag town in Leyte, whose 14-year-old son died in the tragedy said he was happy with the ruling of the US court.

“This money will be used to get back the properties that we pawned…This is vey timely. We finally received our claims. Thank God, “ Tomas said in Filipino.

MetroBank officials said the remaining claimants should open an account in any of their branches to receive their claims.

Leo Giron, president of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines-Leyte and whose law office helped the heirs of the victims in their legal battle, said the ruling of the US court was “just and equitable.”

“It may not be substantial insofar as the claimants are concerned, but they should be satisfied with what they got,” Giron said.