The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Tuesday night, Feb 4, confirmed the possible location of the sunken MV Trisha Kerstin 3 as three more bodies were recovered by search and retrieval teams, pushing the death toll to 45.

A vessel believed to be the MV Trisha Kerstin 3 was found using the side-scan sonar system deployed by the PCG on the sixth day of the diving operations. The confirmation came at 10:46 p.m., according to the PCG.

“Although a vessel was earlier detected on the seabed using sonar, with approximately 95 percent certainty, we want to ensure 100 percent confirmation to avoid any misconceptions,” said Ensign LJ Ogatis, from the Coast Guard Public Affairs Service.

Commander Cheska Jamorol, supervisor of the PCG Technical Diving Group, said the vessel is positioned east to west relative to Baluk-Baluk Island in Basilan.

“The vessel is lying in an east-to-west orientation relative to Baluk-Baluk Island,” she said.

A joint search and rescue team recovered one cadaver in the same area on Tuesday, and it was subjected to identification and proper disposition.

The team was composed of personnel from government agencies, local government units, and fisherfolk volunteers.

Operations resumed on Wednesday, Feb. 4, and the PCG reported the recovery of two more cadavers in the vicinity waters off Baluk-Baluk Island.

The remains were also turned over to authorities for identification and proper disposition.

Meanwhile, the number of survivors stood at 316 while the number of missing individuals has yet to be finalized due to conflicting data from the passenger manifest and the statements of the surviving crew members.

The recovery was deemed critical as the PCG earlier disclosed that locating the wreck increases the chances of finding trapped victims and additional remains, and makes underwater operations safer and more systematic.

Further, the PCG said it is crucial to determine what caused the sinking of the vessel. It explained that examining the vessel’s position, damage, and orientation can provide evidence of whether the incident was due to overloading, structural failure, weather conditions, or human error, providing key information for any official investigation and for possible filing of criminal or administrative cases.