At least five dead and more than 80 missing after fire on Philippines ferry

At least five people have been killed and more than 80 are missing after a fire on a passenger ferry off the western Philippines.

So far, 43 people have been rescued from the MV June Aster off the municipality of Coron in Palawan province, Philippines Coastguard spokeswoman Commodore Noemie Cayabyab said.

According to the manifest, a total of 134 people were on board.

The ferry was afloat but listing after the fire, which started on Wednesday evening and burned overnight, was put out.

Smoke could be seen drifting over the charred vessel by midday, local time (5am, UK time).

Ms Cayabyab said it was unclear what caused the fire, which one survivor said may have begun in the cargo hold.

She said 134 people were on board, 117 of them passengers and 17 crew. There was no information about any foreigners onboard.

Large-scale rescue operation

"We are continuing search and rescue operations," she said, adding that high-speed response boats, a military vessel and other government boats had joined a coastguard vessel in the effort, along with private volunteers and fishermen.

As part of a large-scale rescue operation, the coastguard told ships nearby to be on the lookout for passengers and coordinated with coastal villages in case some passengers drifted to the shore.

Life jackets thrown to survivors

Rescue teams were using drift-modelling tools to identify areas where people may have ​been carried by currents.

Coastguard staff could be seen throwing life jackets to survivors as the ferry burned in the background in pictures published of the scene.

Passengers were helped into smaller boats taking them to shallow water, and body bags were laid out at what looked like a port.

The MV June Aster had left the Philippines capital Manila heading for Coron in Palawan province in the west of the country when the fire started as it neared its destination at around 6.45pm on Wednesday.

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Bad weather and big waves made the rescuers' task more difficult. The ferry was around four nautical miles (4.6 miles) off Coron's village of Turda when it sent a distress signal but strong sea currents had dragged it to a distance of 7.68 nautical miles (4.8 miles) off Turda.

Sea accidents are not uncommon in the Philippines, where ferries are often used to travel between islands of the archipelago.

Storms, badly maintained vessels, overcrowding and loose enforcement of safety regulations, especially in remote provinces, can contribute to problems.

More than 4,000 people died in the world's deadliest maritime disaster when the ferry Dona Paz sank after colliding with a fuel tanker in the central Philippines in 1987.

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