Ferry carrying 342 sinks in southern Philippines, at least 8 dead

At least 138 people have so far been rescued, according to an emergency responder.

The ferry was traveling to the province of Sulu. (EPA Images pic)

MANILA:

 A ferry carrying 342 passengers sank Monday morning in the southern Philippines, leaving at least eight dead, a local mayor said.

There were “8 confirmed casualties” so far from the sinking of the M/V Trisha Kerstin 3, according to a Facebook post by Arsina Laja Kahing-Nanoh, town mayor in Basilan province.

Basilan emergency responder Ronalyn Perez told AFP “at least 138 people” had so far been rescued.

“The challenge here really is the number of patients that are coming in. We are short-staffed at the moment,” Perez said, adding that 18 people had been brought to one local hospital.

“The ferry was sailing from Zamboanga City to Jolo Island when the incident happened,” she said. Jolo Island the primary island of the Sulu province.

The Philippine Coast Guard said it was “actively coordinating” to assist its station in southern Mindanao with search and rescue operations.

The archipelago nation of 116 million has a long history of disasters involving ferries between its islands.

In 2023, more than 30 people were killed when a fire ripped through a ferry in the southern Philippines. - FMT