Death toll rises to 29 in Philippine ferry fire

A handout screengrab photo from the Isabela City Disaster Risk Management Office taken on March 30, 2023 shows people walking towards the burnt passenger ferry Lady Mary Joy 3 after it was towed to the shores of Hadji Muhmatad, Basilan province, southern Philippines. The Philippine Coast Guard PCG said on Thursday that the death toll from the fire that broke out on a ferry carrying more than 200 people in the southern Philippines has risen to 29, including six children.

The M V Lady Mary Joy 3, a passenger and cargo vessel, was headed to Jolo from Zamboanga City when it caught fire on Baluk-Baluk Island in Hadji Muhtamad town in Basilan province around 10.40 pm local time on Wednesday.

Commodore Rejard Marfe, the commander of the PCG District in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, said 18 torched bodies were found in different parts of the ferry, while another 11 bodies were plucked out of the sea and 230 people were rescued. Six children were among the dead.

Marfe said that the fire was put out after nine hours, and that we continue to search the boat for possible casualties.

The manifest showed 205 passengers and 35 crew, according to Marfe. Security personnel from the coast guard and the army were not on the list. The security team has four coast guard personnel. We're still determining the number of army soldiers on the vessel. Marfe said the vessel was not overloaded and can accommodate at least 403 people.

The chief disaster reduction and management office in Basilan province, Nixon Alonzo, told a local radio that authorities are verifying that seven more passengers who jumped into the sea are missing.

Hadji Muhtamad Mayor Arsina Kahing-Nanoh posted pictures of the vessel on the beach of Baluk-Baluk Island and some of the rescued passengers on social media.

The cause of the fire, which started in an air-conditioned cabin in the vessel, is being investigated by authorities. Most of the passengers were asleep when the fire broke out.

The PCG deployed personnel and its vessel to help in the search and rescue operation, which continues at the time.