A Philippine coast guard commander said Friday that the tragic scenes of death his team saw aboard a gutted ferry, including bodies of adults clutching children, had moved them to tears and sparked fears other passengers could be found dead in the still-smoldering ship.
At least 29 of more than 250 people onboard the M/V Lady Mary Joy 3 were killed in the blaze that raged through the ferry Wednesday while it was on an overnight trip from the southern Zamboanga city to Jolo town in Sulu province. At least seven passengers, including two army soldiers, remained missing in the country’s deadliest sea disaster this year, the coast guard said.
Many passengers jumped into the sea in panic without life jackets and were saved by rescuers but at least 11 drowned. When a team of coast guard personnel, including Bureau of Fire officers, boarded the burned ferry on Baluk-baluk island’s coast, they discovered the bodies of 18 passengers scattered on the uppermost open-air economy deck and another floor below, coast guard Commander Chadley Salahuddin said.
“What if my mother or my other loved ones were the ones who were trapped here? They were just a step away from the open sides but why did they not jump off like the others?” Salahuddin asked. His team found a partly burned rifle, which may have been left by a police officer who was among the passengers who survived, Salahuddin said, adding that there was no sign of a bomb explosion at least in the upper decks that they managed to inspect.
Threats posed by Muslim insurgents, including those aligned with the Islamic State group, remain a security issue in the southern Philippines, where cargo and passenger ships are provided extra security by the coast guard and other law enforcement agencies in vulnerable regions.
Malaysia Latest News, Malaysia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Deaths as Philippine passenger ferry catches fireVessel carrying about 250 passengers catches fire off southern Philippine province of Basilan, a coast guard official says, leaving at least 12 dead with seven still unaccounted for.
Read more »
Philippine ferry fire leaves 12 dead, at least 7 missingMANILA, Philippines (AP) — A ferry carrying about 250 passengers and crew caught fire between Philippine islands and at least 12 people were killed with seven still missing, a provincial governor said Thursday.
Read more »
Philippine ferry fire leaves 31 dead, at least 7 missingA ferry carrying about 250 passengers and crew caught fire in the southern Philippines and 31 people drowned or died in the blaze and were discovered later, a provincial governor said Thursday.
Read more »
Deadly fire engulfs Philippine ferry as dozens of passengers jump into sea to escape | CNNAt least 28 people were killed Wednesday night after an inter-island ferry caught fire in the southern Philippines, with many of the 250 passengers jumping overboard into dark waters trying to escape the blaze, authorities said.
Read more »
Philippine ferry fire kills 31 people; at least 7 missingA fire broke out on a ferry in the southern Philippines and raged overnight for eight hours, killing at least 31 of the approximately 250 passengers and crew, officials said Thursday.
Read more »
Philippine ferry catches fire; dozens dead or injured, authorities sayPassengers were forced to jump into the sea as flames engulfed the vessel, which was traveling from Zamboanga in the southern Philippines.
Read more »