(UPDATE) SEARCH and rescue operations intensified after a ferry with more than 360 people onboard sank Monday morning in choppy seas off Zamboanga, leaving at least 18 dead and 24 still missing, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said.
The MV Trisha Kerstin 3 issued a distress signal at 1:50 a.m., a bit over four hours after it departed the Port of Zamboanga City on the southwestern tip of Mindanao, the coast guard said in a statement.
Commander Romel Dua, Coast Guard District Southwestern Mindanao Operations officer, reported that the triple-decker ferry went down about five kilometers east of Baluk-Baluk Island, part of the Basilan province chain of islands off the Zamboanga Peninsula. It left Zamboanga City at about 9:20 p.m., bound for Jolo, Sulu.
Video released by the governor of Basilan province showed barefoot survivors being wrapped in blankets and placed on gurneys, while victims of the sinking were carried past in body bags.
The MV Tricia Kerstin 3 went down on nearly the same route where 31 people died in 2023 after a fire aboard the Lady Mary Joy 3 ferry. Both ships were owned by locally based Aleson Shipping Lines.
At least 317 people have so far been rescued, according to the most recent tally by the Philippine Coast Guard, with 18 confirmed dead and 24 still unaccounted for amid an ongoing search-and-rescue operation.
Sheryl Balondo, a rescuer in Isabela City, one of two municipalities where survivors were being taken, said their office had received more than 100 phone calls from concerned family members.
“There’s a tug in our hearts whenever we pick up a call. Their voices sounded worried,” she said. “What we can only say is that, as of now, we don’t have the final list (of names), because the search and retrieval operation is ongoing.” Coast Guard units, local government agencies, the Philippine Navy, and the Philippine Air Force deployed multiple assets in the rescue operation, including the Coast Guard vessel BRP Tubbataha (MRRV-4401), small sea craft, the PCG Islander, sea ambulances, and a Philippine Air Force Black Hawk helicopter. Local fishermen also assisted in rescuing survivors.
Basilan emergency responder Ronalyn Perez said rescuers were struggling to handle the sudden influx of survivors.
“The challenge really is the number of patients that are coming in. We are short-staffed at the moment,” Perez said in an interview, adding at least 18 had been brought to one local hospital.
Video released by the Philippine Coast Guard showed survivors being plucked from the water and receiving medical attention.
Survivors could be heard shouting for help in the dark in a live video on Facebook.
“We cannot say for now the reason of the sinking, but we were instructed to conduct a marine casualty investigation to determine the cause,” Dua said. “As of now, we are focused on the rescue.”
Survivors were being brought to the coast guard stations in Zamboanga and Isabela City, he added.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) provided ready-to-eat food and psychosocial support to 137 survivors of the capsized ferry.
DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian also ordered the immediate preparation of financial aid to complement the other assistance being extended to the rescued passengers.
Not overloaded
Dua emphasized that the ferry was not overloaded, with a maximum passenger capacity of 352 and an official manifest listing 332 passengers.
“The vessel had proper clearance from the Maritime Industry Authority before sailing,” he said.
As of Monday morning, only life rafts from the sunken ferry had been spotted, and a marine casualty investigation has been ordered to determine the cause of the accident. Authorities continue to call on nearby vessels and commercial ships to assist in locating the missing passengers.
Meanwhile, in Manila, survivors and deceased from a separate maritime incident involving the Singaporean-flagged cargo vessel M/V Devon Bay arrived early Monday morning aboard the PCG ship BRP Teresa Magbanua (MRRV-9701), docking at Pier 13, Port Area.
Fifteen survivors and the remains of two crew members were turned over to PCG Commandant Admiral Ronnie Gil Galvan, along with representatives from the Department of Migrant Workers, the Bureau of Quarantine, and the vessel’s agent.
The M/V Devon Bay, carrying 21 Filipino crew members and loaded with iron ore, had been en route from Gutalac, Zamboanga del Sur to Yangjiang, China when it capsized about 141 nautical miles west of Sabangan Point, Ango Bay, Pangasinan, around 8:30 p.m. Thursday.
The China Coast Guard (CCG) rescued the crew and later coordinated a handover of survivors and deceased to the PCG. Search and rescue operations for the vessel’s remaining four crew members, including the captain, continue, with the BRP Cape San Agustin (MRRV-4408) and a PCG Islander aircraft deployed.
Captain’s heroism
Capt. Elimar Jucal, the M/V Devon Bay’s master and a native of Negros Occidental, was cited for heroism after ensuring his crew’s safety before abandoning the vessel.
Based on accounts from survivors, PCG officials said Jucal, who is still missing, was the last person to leave the vessel before it sank.
“Based on the narration and accounts from the survivors, the captain was indeed the last to leave the ship before it went down,” said Capt. Alvin Dagalea, commanding officer of BRP Teresa Magbanua.
PCG Commandant Admiral Ronnie Gil Gavan said Jucal did not abandon his crew and fulfilled his duty as ship master.
Gavan said Jucal remained among the four crew members still missing, even as search and rescue operations were ongoing.
“In fact, he is one of the four who are still missing and whom we are continuously searching for,” Gavan said. “We have a Coast Guard aircraft in the area and another vessel that is still conducting search and rescue operations.” Gavan added that while it is a basic maritime principle for a captain to leave the ship last, Jucal demonstrated that responsibility under extreme circumstances.
“It is very basic that the captain should be the one to leave his ship last, and he demonstrated exactly what is expected,” he said.
Galvan also emphasized the importance of international coordination in maritime safety following the rescue of the Filipino crew of Devon Bay by China Coast Guard.
“Coast Guard operations prioritize saving lives regardless of borders, as demonstrated by the coordinated search and rescue efforts and handover between the Philippine and China Coast Guards. We are not talking about territory or jurisdiction. The reason the coast guard exists in the world is to save lives. So in situations like this, we prove that the coast guards are still fulfilling the very purpose for which they were established,” he said.
History of tragedy
The Philippines has a long history of disasters involving the inter-island ferries that ply its seas.
Many rely on cheap and poorly regulated boats and ships for transport between the country’s more than 7,000 islands, despite regular accidents.
In 2023, more than 30 people were killed when a fire ripped through a ferry in the southern Philippines, while a 2015 capsizing off the western coast of Leyte Island resulted in more than 60 deaths.
In 1987, the Dona Paz ferry collided with an oil tanker in a pre-Christmas accident that claimed more than 4,000 lives. It was the world’s worst peacetime disaster at sea. WITH AFP