Ferry sinks in northern Philippines, 28 dead

Monday, December 15, 2008

At least 28 people drowned and were confirmed dead, 46 were rescued, while 34 others remain missing on Sunday, after an overcrowded passenger motorboat capsized off waters in Ballesteros, a town of 17,000 people, the Cagayan police reported.

'M/B Mae Jan', a wooden-hulled ferry, was carrying 102 passengers, after an eight-hour voyage from Calayan Island in the Luzon Strait for Appari when it capsized less than 300 meters (984 feet) from its destination, at 8:30 p.m. Its bamboo outrigger broke due to strong waves, as it reached the mouth of the Cagayan River ('Bannag' Rio Grande de Cagayan, 'Ilog ng Kagayan'), along Barangay Linao, about 50 meters from the shoreline of Pallog village.

Divers from the combined teams of the Philippine Navy and Coast Guard helped in the rescue operations. 11 of the fatalities, including the vessel owner, Arellano, and her daughter were identified. The police said "there was a possibility that the boat was overloaded," saying that "there was also livestock on board." Due to "trauma," the ferry's captain refused to talk to police.

Meanwhile, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) formed a Special Board of Marine Inquiry (SBMI) to investigate the sea tragedy. It ordered the "immediate dispatch of SAR-003 and MCS-3005 vessels and the PCG Islander for aerial surveillance." PCG noted the possible overloading of the vessel since the boat's franchise authorized it to carry only 40 passengers and 10 crew members.

In November, a cargo vessel sank in rough seas north of Cagayan, and passing vessels rescued 16 of 20 passengers. Weeks earlier, separate storms sank two passenger vessels in the central Philippines, drowning more than 50 people.

Prior to the ferry sinking, the Philippine weather bureau had issued Gale warnings to coastal towns, of approaching tropical storm "Ulysses" (international codename: Dolphin) from the Pacific with winds of up to 60 miles (95 kilometers) per hour, centered off southeastern Catanduanes, eastern Philippines.

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Related news

"Bodies retrieved from Philippine ferry capsized in typhoon" — Wikinews, June 24, 2008
"Over 700 feared dead after ferry hit by typhoon" — Wikinews, June 22, 2008

Sources

GMANews.TV. "Coast Guard forms special panel to probe Cagayan sea tragedy" — Yahoo! News, December 15, 2008
Francisco Alcuaz Jr.. "Philippines Ferry Capsizes Leaving 22 People Drowned" — Bloomberg L.P., December 15, 2008
"At least 23 dead as Philippines ferry sinks" — The Daily Telegraph, December 15, 2008
"Deaths as Philippines ferry sinks" — BBC News Online, December 15, 2008
"23 killed after overcrowded Philippine ferry capsizes" — Deutsche Welle, December 15, 2008
Villamor Visaya Jr.. "Ferry capsizes in Cagayan, drowning 23" — Philippine Daily Inquirer, December 15, 2008
Sophia Dedace. "Cagayan sea tragedy death toll hits 28; 22 still missing" — GMA Network, December 15, 2008
"Boat sinks in northern Philippines, 23 dead" — Reuters, December 15, 2008

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