On September 10, the Philippine Coast Guard said that a fierce fire broke out on a passenger ferry near a famous tourist destination in Palawan Island province, killing at least 5 people and 87 people are still missing.
The incident occurred on the evening of September 9 on the M/V June Aster ferry at a location about 2.2km off the coast. Functional forces brought the bodies of 5 unfortunate victims ashore and safely rescued 42 people, including 38 passengers and 4 crew members.
Representative of the Philippine Coast Guard - Captain Noemi Cayabyab - informed on local radio that the list of passengers registered on the ferry recorded 134 people. Based on the number of people rescued and the number of bodies found, there are still 87 people out of contact.
Local authorities warn that these figures may continue to fluctuate as the search and rescue operation is being urgently deployed on a large scale. Currently, firefighters are still trying to completely extinguish the fire and have not been able to take statements from survivors.
According to journey monitoring data from MarineTraffic, the June Aster ferry previously departed from Manila. Authorities are opening an investigation to clarify the cause of the tragedy.
