Fire Destroys Philippine Ferry, Killing Five and Leaving Dozens Missing
A fire aboard a passenger ferry off the coast of the Philippines has killed at least five people, according to the Philippine Coast Guard, and search and recovery efforts continue for missing passengers.
On Wednesday, the ferry June Aster left Manila and got under way for the port of Coron, Busuanga Island, just south of Mindoro. Based on early indications, is believed that there were 117 passengers and 17 crewmembers aboard. At about 1845 hours Wednesday night, the Aster caught fire at a position about one nautical mile off the town of Marcilla, on the east side of Busuanga. Multiple PCG units and other government agencies responded to the scene, aided by commercial vessels from the port of Coron.
Video released by the Philippine Coast Guard showed that the fire was burning vigorously throughout the ship by the time that first responders arrived on scene. Visible against the dark night, areas of the hull glowed red-hot from the heat of the blaze.
Five bodies were retrieved from the scene and 42 people were rescued. The authorities are still working to determine the exact number of missing persons from the accident, but the number could be significant based on the initial manifest.
Search operations continued overnight, the PCG said. The cause of the casualty remains under investigation.
that matters most
Get the latest maritime news delivered to your inbox daily.
PCG servicemembers transport bodies retrieved from the scene, Sept. 9 (PCG)
