ISABELA, PHILIPPINES: A tragedy struck after a vessel carrying more than 350 people on board encountered severe weather conditions and sank off the southern Philippines. So far, 18 people have died, and 24 remain missing, authorities have reported. “MV Trisha Kerstin 3 sent out a call for help around 1:50 a.m., some more than four hours after leaving the Port of Zamboanga City on Mindanao Island’s southwestern tip,” Philippine Coast Guard reported.
Survivors of the ship, barefoot and shivering in blankets, were loaded on stretchers in footage provided by Basilan’s governor. Others, still wrapped in body bags, were carried away. The ship, which is a triple decker, sank only a little ways away from where 31 people died in 2023 after a fire engulfed a ship operated by Aleson Shipping Lines, known as the Lady Mary Joy 3.
At the most recent update, 317 passengers were rescued. Noemie Cayabyab, the Coast Guard spokesperson, said the conditions were rough. She said, “Based on the information we got from the survivors themselves, the waters were rough at the time.”
Rescue workers in Isabela City and surrounding towns were swamped by the number of survivors. Basilan emergency worker Ronalyn Perez stated, “The challenge is the number of patients coming in. We’re short-staffed.” A minimum of 18 individuals were admitted into local hospitals.
Survivors have been rescued from the water, receiving medical care, some of them crying for help, captured on live videos circulated online. The sinking of the vessel is to be investigated, according to Coast Guard commander, Romel Dua.
Aleson Shipping Lines, through its statement, expressed that the company is working Hand in Hand with the authorities, and the ferry is not overloaded. “Our hearts go out to everyone who was on board.”
The Philippines is an archipelago comprising more than 7,000 islands. Over the years, the region has recorded numerous maritime disasters. Ferries traveling from island to island are not well regulated in the country. The biggest disasters include the 2015 ferry accident in the waters of Leyte Island in the Philippines in 2015, in which more than 60 lives were lost. The Dona Paz accident in 1987 is in remembrance of the deadliest accident ever recorded in peacetime. The accident killed more than 4,000 people. Rescue teams are still on the task of rescuing the missing, though officials say that the process may take days owing to the rough weather.
