Navigational hazards
One major characteristic of Philippine seas is the presence of payaos or anchored rafts
serving as platforms for fish aggregating devices. These are found all over the archipelago
and is employed by the fishing industry to ensure good catch. It is very popular and has even
been adopted by other countries all over the world. It is usually anchored at depths from 200
m to as deep as 3500 m and sometimes straddling the sea lanes. There is currently no policy
on the deployment of payaos and incidents have been reported of propellers getting snagged
in the ropes and aggregating devices attached to the rafts. As such, it is a navigational hazard
particularly for smaller sized vessels traveling at night and without radar. Some rafts are
made of steel with cables forming the upper part of the mooring system, a construction quite
sturdy and of potential danger in terms of collision and damage to vessels en route.
Lighthouses are crucial to navigation particularly at night. This is recognized with several
projects implementing the upgrading and installation of lighthouses all over the country. This
component has been adequately addressed as it is the most obvious requirement for safety at
sea. Several foreign funded projects have resulted in the rehabilitation of old lighthouses and
the installation of new ones. Particular attention has given to the more traveled routes such as
the Manila to Cebu route where most of the waypoints and critical landmarks have
lighthouses installed