DEVELOPING STORYDEVELOPING STORY,
Coastguard says at the least 215 folks have been rescued, whereas a seek for 144 lacking folks is ongoing.
Revealed On 26 Jan 2026
A ferry carrying greater than 350 folks has capsized off the southern Philippine province of Basilan, killing at the least 15 folks, in line with officers.
The accident occurred after midnight on Monday because the passenger vessel, MV Trisha Kerstin 3, was en path to Jolo Island in southern Sulu after departing the port metropolis of Zamboanga.
Advisable Tales
listing of 4 objectsfinish of listing
The vessel, which had 332 passengers on document and 27 crew, issued a misery sign at 1:50am on Monday (1750 GMT Sunday), about over 4 hours after it departed Zamboanga Metropolis, in line with the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG).
The ferry sank in good climate a couple of nautical mile (almost 2 kilometers) from the island village of Baluk-baluk in Basilan province, the place lots of the survivors had been initially taken, the PCG mentioned.
Coast Guard Commander Romel Dua of Southern Mindanao District advised the AFP information company that at the least 316 folks had up to now been rescued, with 15 confirmed lifeless and 28 nonetheless unaccounted for.
“A coast guard plane can be on the way in which to assist the operation. The Navy and Air Drive additionally despatched their property,” Dua advised AFP.
Emergency responders in Basilan mentioned these who had been rescued and wanted medical consideration had been dropped at a hospital within the capital metropolis of Isabela.
“The problem right here actually is the variety of sufferers which can be coming in. We’re short-staffed in the intervening time,” Ronalyn Perez, a medic, mentioned.
Basilan Governor Mujiv Hataman posted clips from the scene at Isabela port in Mindanao on Fb, exhibiting survivors being ushered off boats, some wrapped in thermal blankets, and others being carried on stretchers.
The PCG mentioned rescue efforts had been nonetheless ongoing.
Dua, the coastguard commander in Mindanao, mentioned the reason for the ferry sinking was not instantly clear and that there could be an investigation. He added that the coastguard cleared the ferry earlier than it left the Zamboanga port, and there was no signal of overloading.
Sea accidents are widespread within the Philippine archipelago due to frequent storms, badly maintained vessels, overcrowding and spotty enforcement of security laws, particularly in distant provinces.
On Friday, at the least two Filipino sailors had been reported killed, and 15 others had been rescued after a Singapore-flagged basic cargo vessel en path to China from the southern island of Mindanao sank. 4 different sailors stay lacking.
Final Monday, a personal vessel additionally sank off the Davao area in Mindanao, leaving at the least six lifeless and 9 others lacking.
In December 1987, the ferry Dona Paz sank after colliding with a gas tanker within the central Philippines, killing greater than 4,300 folks on this planet’s worst peacetime maritime catastrophe.
