A Philippine ferry with more than 250 passengers and crew, including Christmas holiday travellers, on board sank after being battered by fierce winds and large waves off the north-east coast of the country, leaving at least four people dead and at least seven others missing, officials said.About 240 people were pulled alive, some with injuries, from the rough seas by navy and coastguard personnel and a flotilla of fishing boats after the M/V Mercraft 3 sank in the Polillo Strait between Quezon province’s Infanta town and the ferry’s destination, Polillo island, officials said.A survivor, Donel Jade Mendiola, told DZMM radio that bad weather briefly delayed the ferry’s departure, but the weather improved and it then departed Quezon’s Real town. Strong winds and large waves started to lash the vessel about two hours into the trip, he said.“The vessel came to a halt and started taking in water in the front side. The passengers dashed to one side and the ferry started to sink,” Mendiola said. He said the passengers were instructed to don life vests.Coastguard boats, navy vessels and fishing boats rescued 240 people, including many who drifted in the rough sea, coastguard spokesman Armand Balilo said, adding that the 206-tonne ferry could carry 286 people and apparently was not overcrowded.Among the survivors taken to a Quezon hospital was a 61-year-old Australian identified by authorities as Roland Kempt, who lives in the Philippines, the coastguard said in a statement.Two women and two men died, Quezon officials said.Earlier this week, a tropical storm left more than 50 people dead and 31 others missing, mostly due to landslides, and damaged more than 10,000 houses in the central Philippines before weakening and blowing into the South China Sea. The storm drenched Quezon province on the southern tip of northern Luzon island, but there were no storm warnings when Mercraft 3 sailed out, officials said.
ACCIDENTS
21 December 2017 - 18:51
Ferry M/V Mercraft 3 capsized with more than 250 lives onboard
A Philippine ferry with more than 250 passengers and crew, including Christmas holiday travellers, on board sank after being battered by fierce winds and large waves off the north-east coast of the country, leaving at least four people dead and at least seven others missing, officials said.
ACCIDENTS
21 December 2017 - 18:51
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