Toxic find halts Philippine dive

Toxic find halts Philippine dive

news.bbc.co.uk

The operation to recover hundreds of bodies inside a sunken Philippine ferry has been suspended after a highly toxic pesticide was found to be on board.

Ten tonnes of endosulfan were illegally in the cargo, destined for a Del Monte pineapple plantation, officials said.

Exposure to endosulfan, an insecticide, has been blamed for mental and genetic disorders, skin diseases and nervous disorders, and even death.

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And so the 'profit run' may now be partly to blame for the deaths of nearly 800 people.

First, the ship should not have sailed with a typhoon approaching, secondly, the ship may have been under an abnormal load.

It is a passenger ferry, not a transporter.

But, as far as the 'blame' goes, it seems everyone knew but nobody knew and one is blaming the other and each may very well claim innocence.

Reports suggest it may have been the fruit multinational which alerted authorities to the toxic cargo.

Reports do not suggest that Del Monte was aware beforehand that the insecticide was being illegally carried aboard a passenger vessel.

So just how did they discover it was on board this ship? How can you alert someone o something that you're supposed to have no knowledge of. If the shipment was late and you wished to find out where it was, what could lead you to suspect it was onboard a passenger ferry?

Whether the ferry operator, Sulpicio Lines, knew of the toxic cargo is unclear.

But it is unclear whether it received the information from Sulpicio Lines, or whether Sulpicio Lines was itself in the dark about the chemical cargo.

Again, smoke and mirrors to try to pass the blame and make yourself look as innocent as possible. This is just typical corporate policy playing its game to void themselves of the responsibility of near to 800 deaths.

There is utmost uproar here in the Philippines. Everyone is shocked. There are a lot of people here who can not believe that this has been allowed to happen, though there are just as many who say nothing as such things go on all the time here.

All divers involved are being tested, as well as fish population and the sea itself for any indication of toxic poisoning.

It is time that those who own or are part of a corrupt corporation are held personally responsible for any wrong doing. If this does not take form then the corporation itself should be punished as it would any human individual. These corporations should not just be penalized, they should be shut down, disbanded and locked up for good.

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