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The fate of commercial passenger ship, MV Princess of the Stars, is the latest in the list of Sulpicio Line’s maritime incidents.

In the eighties, two other passenger ships owned by Sulpico Lines, carrying a combined 2,100 passengers and crew, perished during their sea voyage.

In December 20, 1987, MV Doña Paz sank after colliding with the small oil tanker, Vector. The passenger ferry was en route from Catbalogan, Samar to Manila.

Vector, which was carrying some 8,800 barrels of petrol, ignited and caused a fire that rapidly spread onto the Doña Paz.

Two of the 13 crew members aboard the Vector survived, but all 58 crew members of the Doña Paz died.

The official death toll on the ferry is 1,565 near the number of passengers in the manifest. Survivors later reported that the ferry was overloaded and that death toll could have surpassed over 4,000.

An inquiry later revealed that the crew of the Vector was underqualified and that the boat’s license had expired.

The sinking of the MV Doña Paz is considered the world’s worst ferry disaster and the worst peace-time maritime disaster in history.

In October 24, 1988, the sinking of another of Sulpicio Lines‘ inter-island ferry boat MV Doña Marilyn came as Typhoon Ruby, swept through the Philippines.

Doña Marilyn had been carrying 451 passengers and 67 crew members.

Authorities pointed to overloading as the cause of the sinking of Doña Marilyn which reportedly killed over 600 people.

Three hundred survived the tragedy.