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SAN FERNANDO, Philippines: Philippine investigators were to open an inquiry on Wednesday into a ferry disaster believed to have killed 800 as rescuers extinguished slim hopes of finding survivors in the stricken vessel.
More than 100 US and Filipino divers combed the wreckage of the 24,000-tonne Princess of the Stars, whose upturned bow remained jutting above waters off the the central island of Sibuyan after it capsized in a typhoon on Saturday.
"There are no signs of life," navy spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Edgard Arevalo said. Rescuers said anyone who had managed to find air pockets in the ship would have suffocated by now.
Only 57 people survived the tragedy, according to civil defence figures, out of more than 850 people on board, making it one of the worst maritime disasters in the Southeast Asian country's history.
Coastguard spokesman Lieutenant Commander Armand Balilo said a fact-finding investigation into the cause of the accident was to begin in Manila Wednesday.
He said ferry operator Sulpicio Lines as well as maritime experts have been summoned to the inquiry which aims to determine whether the ship was seaworthy and why it was allowed to leave port during a typhoon.
"This board of marine inquiry is a fact-finding investigation," he said, adding that details gathered could be used for a criminal prosecution if needed.
US divers have joined the grim search for bloated bodies of men, women and children who were on the 22-hour trip from Manila to central Cebu when Typhoon Fengshen struck.
With poor visibility and strong undercurrents hampering the operation, officials appealed for more equipment from abroad as well as relief goods for survivors of the typhoon, which left another 600 dead or missing countrywide.
Anthony Golez, a spokesman for President Gloria Arroyo, said the government welcomed any aid from international donors.
"Offers of aid are continuing to come in," he said over local radio.
Arroyo, who is in Washington for an official visit, secured a pledge from US counterpart George W. Bush to send an aircraft carrier, the USS Ronald Reagan, and other naval assets to help with the relief efforts.
"This is a time where America needs to step up, and we will," Bush said as they met in the Oval Office. "We are happy to do it, we want to help our friends in a time of need."
Meanwhile grieving relatives continued to stream to the offices of Sulpicio Lines demanding to know the fate of their loved ones.
Many are inconsolable, but there have also been tearful reunions for the lucky few who survived the tragedy. - AFP/jk
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