Forty dead, 10 still missing following Philippine ferry accident

MANILA (AFP) - - The death toll from a ferry accident in the central Philippines rose to 40 Wednesday with 10 people still missing, officials said.
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The wooden inter-island ferry overturned Tuesday when it was hit by a freak whirlwind just 20 minutes after leaving port with 119 passengers and crew.

Local police chief Senior Superintendent Ruben Sindac told reporters Wednesday that 40 people drowned, 100 were rescued and 10 still missing indicating that the ferry was overloaded.

The ferry's manifest only listed 119 passengers and crew, said Sindac.

It is a common practice for inter-island ferries to be overloaded with last-minute passengers boarding without being listed in the manifest.

The vessel, described as a large wooden-hulled outrigger, capsized 20 minutes after leaving port when it was hit by a freak gust of wind despite clear weather and calm waters.

The coast guard and local authorities resumed rescue operations at first light, said Sindac, adding that "we have fair weather here so we don't see any obstacle in the search for the missing."

The captain of the vessel, Dante Bumbales, has been found and turned over to coast guard officials investigating the incident, Sindac added.

The ferry had just left the port town of Dimasalang on the northeast coast of Masbate for Sorsogon port 80 kilometers (50 miles) away when the incident occurred.

The accident came four months after the 23,000-tonne "Princess of the Stars" capsized during a typhoon off the central island of Sibuyan carrying 850 passengers and crew.

Only 57 passengers and crew survived the accident, which was the worst maritime disaster in the Philippines for 20 years.

Mishaps involving ferries are common in this archipelago where many poor people rely on small, poorly-maintained vessels to travel between islands.

From: yahoo