Ferry sinks off southern Philippines, killing at least 18, but more than 300 rescued

Manila, Philippines A boat carrying more than 350 people sank near an island in the southern Philippines early Monday, killing at least 18 people, authorities said. Rescuers rescued hundreds of people, while a flotilla of coast guard and navy vessels are still searching for the missing.

Coast Guard officials said the cargo and passenger ferry apparently encountered technical problems and sank after midnight. According to a rescued passenger who lost her 6-month-old baby, the steel-hulled ship suddenly tipped to one side and sank into the water, sending people out to sea in the dark.

“My wife grabbed our baby and we all got separated into the ocean,” a distraught Mohammad Khan told Gamar Alih, a volunteer rescuer who posted a video of Khan’s comments on Facebook.

He said he and his wife, who was holding their child, were rescued, but the child drowned. When Khan narrated his ordeal, his wife cried beside him.

M/V Trisha Kerstin 3 was sailing from the port city of Zamboanga to southern Jolo Island in Sulu province with 332 passengers and 27 crew members in excellent weather. It sank about a nautical mile off the village of Baluk-Baluk in Basilan province, coast guard commander Rommel Dua told The Associated Press.

“There were two coast guard security officers on board and they were the first to call and alert us to deploy rescue vessels,” Dua said. He said that two security marshals survived.

Officials said rescue workers saved at least 316 passengers and crew members retrieved 18 bodies. Coast Guard and Navy ships, along with a surveillance aircraft, an Air Force Black Hawk helicopter and a fleet of fishing boats, launched search and rescue operations for about two dozen people missing in Basilan, Dua said.

Dua said the cause of the boat sinking was not immediately clear and would be investigated. He said the coast guard cleared the ferry before leaving Zamboanga port and there was no sign of overloading.

Local media reported that 15 passengers on the ship’s manifest decided not to board the ship at the last minute and refunded their fare. Dua said, if confirmed, the number of missing people would reduce.

Alih, a village councillor in Zamboanga City, told the AP press that he volunteered to help with the search and rescue because some of his relatives were among the ferry passengers. They all survived.

The provincial capital of Isabela, where he and ambulance vans were waiting, received several passengers and two bodies, according to Basilan Governor Mujiv Hataman.

the Philippine archipelago due to frequent typhoons

Maritime accidents are common in the Philippine archipelago due to frequent typhoons, poorly maintained ships, overcrowding, and irregular enforcement of safety regulations, especially in remote provinces.

In December 1987, the ferry Dona Paz sank after colliding with a fuel tanker in the central Philippines, killing more than 4,300 people in the world’s deadliest peacetime maritime disaster.