Pesticides in sunken Philippine ferry halt search

MANILA, Philippines -- Philippine officials suspended attempts to retrieve bodies from a sunken ferry Friday due to fears of toxic chemicals in the hold.

Tests revealed no contamination but officials said the search would not resume until the dangerous cargo was removed.

Vice President Noli de Castro told reporters that 22,000 pounds of the pesticide endosulfan went down with the ferry when it capsized in a typhoon Saturday in the central Philippines.

Transportation undersecretary Maria Elena Bautista, head of the task force overseeing the retrieval operations, said divers will not be allowed to resume the search for bodies until the toxic cargo is safely removed. Norlito Gicana, executive director of the Fertilizer and Pesticide Authority, said tests of four water samples from the ship indicated no contamination.

"The area has been found uncontaminated at this point, so while it's uncontaminated, we have to take the cargo out," Bautista said. A team of foreign divers with special chemical-resistant suits will examine the cargo and recommend how to haul it out of the ship, she said.

More than 100 divers, including eight U.S. servicemen, have joined the search.

It remained unclear how many of the 850-plus passengers and crew were trapped when the 23,824-ton Princess of the Stars went belly up during the powerful typhoon, leaving just the tip of the bow jutting from the water.

Only 56 survivors have been found, while 146 bodies have washed ashore or been recovered at sea, coast guard Commander Danilo Avila said.

Typhoon Fengshen also left 540 people dead and 277 missing elsewhere in the country, the National Disaster Coordinating Council said.

Bautista said ferry owner Sulpicio Lines violated maritime rules that prohibit carrying toxic or hazardous substances in passenger ships.

De Castro said the government is considering filing charges against Sulpicio.