Five people have died and more than 80 others remain unaccounted for after a passenger ferry caught fire off the western Philippine island of Palawan, triggering a major search and rescue effort.
The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said several vessels and other resources had been sent to the area to look for survivors. Rescue teams were also using drift-modelling technology to estimate where currents may have carried people from the stricken ferry.
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Authorities said the vessel’s manifest, combined with the 43 survivors and the reported deaths, indicated that more than 80 people were still missing. The figures remained provisional and could change as the operation continued.
Coast Guard spokesperson Commodore Noemie Cayabyab said rescuers had not yet been able to board the ferry. Dense smoke continued to pour from the vessel, while intense heat and the possibility of explosions posed further dangers.
Drone footage shows razed Philippine ferry
Cayabyab said the manifest recorded 117 passengers and 17 crew members aboard the ferry. The vessel had left Baseco in Manila and was travelling to Coron, a well-known Palawan destination popular for its diving, beaches and island-hopping excursions.
Two Chilean nationals were among the 43 people rescued, according to Aileen Ausente, the PCG spokesperson in Palawan. She said aircraft were ready to join the operation if weather conditions allowed.
The burned ferry had moved farther from the site where it was first located overnight, pushed by winds and ocean currents, Cayabyab said. The shifting position was making the search more difficult for rescue crews.
Officials have not yet determined what caused the fire.
There were no immediate reports that other foreign nationals were aboard.
MarineTraffic tracking data showed that the June Aster had sailed from Manila.
Ferries are a vital form of transport in the Philippines, an archipelago of more than 7,600 islands where millions of people depend on boats to travel between provinces.
But the country has a mixed maritime safety record. Earlier ferry disasters have often been associated with overcrowding, severe weather and weak enforcement of safety rules.
In January, at least 52 people were killed when a triple-decker ferry carrying more than 340 passengers sank in waters off the southern Philippines.
The M/V Trisha Kerstin 3 went down on a route close to the one where 31 people died in 2023 after fire engulfed the Lady Mary Joy 3 ferry.
