Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
The death toll in the Philippine passenger ferry fire rose to 76 on Saturday after rescuers recovered more remains, while 13 people were still missing. Forty-three people survived the blaze, which broke out on Wednesday night among the 132 people on board.
The ferry had sailed from Manila and was about 39 kilometres from its destination in Coron, in the southwestern Palawan province, when the fire erupted. The cause has not been determined, but coast guard spokesperson Commodore Noemie Cayabyab said a survivor told authorities it may have started in the cargo hold. The survivor recounted hearing a blast before smoke and fire spread quickly, fanned by the winds, officials said.
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Tents were put up at the Port of Borac in Coron, where body bags were unloaded from a ship that transported them from the ferry. Cayabyab said authorities were looking for the ship’s captain, who reportedly survived but is not listed among the survivors.
She said a multi-agency maritime safety and criminal investigation would look into all angles, including the possible liability of the captain and crew. Cayabyab said survivors recounted that the fire spread quickly, leaving no time to get life jackets. A tarpaulin that shielded the open areas of the ship from the rain “may be a possible contributing factor but we can’t determine now if they were trapped inside,” she said.
Investigators will also check whether fire emergency procedures were followed, including whether the captain sounded an alarm or gave a warning and instructions, and whether the crew assisted passengers.
Ferries are frequently used for transport across the Philippine archipelago, where sea accidents are not uncommon because of storms, badly maintained vessels, overcrowding and weak enforcement of safety regulations, especially in remote provinces. In 1987, the ferry Dona Paz sank after colliding with a fuel tanker in the central Philippines, killing more than 4,300 people in what remains the world’s deadliest peacetime maritime disaster.
With PTI Inputs
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SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
