Death toll from Philippine ferry fire rises to 76

The Philippine Coast Guard says 41 more bodies have been recovered from the M/V June Aster, with 13 people still missing.

Philippine coastguard personnel in protective suits carry a body bag containing the remains of a ferry fire victim to a tent for identification at the port of Borac in Coron, Palawan province [Ron Lopez/AFP]

The death toll from a Philippine ferry fire has risen to 76, with 13 people still missing, after search teams recovered additional remains from the passenger vessel off Palawan province.

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said in a statement on Saturday that 41 more charred bodies were retrieved from the ferry.

list 1 of 3 Five dead, dozens missing in Philippines ferry fire

list 2 of 3 Family members wait after deadly Philippines ferry fire

list 3 of 3 Philippines ferry fire death toll rises to 35 after bodies recovered

M/V June Aster was sailing from Manila, carrying 132 passengers and crew, when a blaze engulfed its lower decks on Wednesday evening, just 2.2 kilometres (1.3 miles) off its destination of Coron, in northern Palawan.

Rescuers pulled 43 survivors from the water that night.

Investigators, citing survivor accounts, reported hearing successive explosions before flames swept rapidly through the passenger areas.

“The wind may have contributed to the rapid spread of the flames, based on the survivors’ accounts,” said Commodore Noemi Cayabyab, spokesperson for the PCG, according to local media outlet the Inquirer.

“Some passengers reportedly jumped into the water after seeing the fire and may not have had time to retrieve their life jackets.”

According to authorities, forensic teams and local police are working to identify victims using personal belongings and DNA matching.

“The PCG, [the Philippine National Police’s Scene of the Crime Operatives] and other concerned agencies are currently undertaking the proper recovery and identification of the remains in accordance with established procedures,” Cayabyab said.

Safety procedures and the ship captain’s actions during the early minutes of the disaster are under formal review, maritime officials said.

“With the number of missing and the number of capacity, definitely there is liability here,” Cayabyab added regarding the vessel’s command.

The ferry operator, Atienza Interisland Ferries, issued a statement committing to “full transparency” and assisting affected families with lodging, transportation and medical care as investigations continue.

菲律宾海岸警卫队称，已从“六月星号”货轮上打捞出 41 具遗体，仍有 13 人失踪。

在巴拉望省科隆市博拉克港，身穿防护服的菲律宾海岸警卫队人员将装有渡轮火灾遇难者遗体的尸袋抬到帐篷中进行身份识别。[Ron Lopez/AFP]

菲律宾渡轮火灾造成的死亡人数已上升至 76 人，另有 13 人失踪。搜救队在巴拉望省附近海域的这艘客船上发现了更多遗体。

菲律宾海岸警卫队（PCG）周六发表声明称，从渡轮上又打捞出 41 具烧焦的尸体。

菲律宾渡轮火灾致5人死亡，数十人失踪（列表1/3）

菲律宾致命渡轮火灾后，家属在等待救援（共3张图，第2张）

菲律宾渡轮火灾死亡人数升至35人，已找到多具遗体（列表3/3）

M/V June Aster 号货轮载有 132 名乘客和船员，从马尼拉出发，周三晚上，在距离其目的地巴拉望岛北部科隆仅 2.2 公里（1.3 英里）处，下层甲板突然起火。

当晚，救援人员从水中救起了 43 名幸存者。

调查人员援引幸存者的描述称，他们听到连续的爆炸声，随后火焰迅速席卷了乘客区域。

据当地媒体《问询者报》报道，菲律宾海岸警卫队发言人诺埃米·卡亚比亚布准将表示：“根据幸存者的描述，风可能助长了火势的迅速蔓延。”

“据报道，一些乘客看到火情后跳入水中，可能来不及拿回救生衣。”

据当局称，法医小组和当地警方正在利用个人物品和 DNA 比对来确定受害者身份。

卡亚比亚布说：“菲律宾海岸警卫队、菲律宾国家警察犯罪现场调查人员和其他相关机构目前正在按照既定程序对遗骸进行妥善的搜寻和鉴定。”

海事官员表示，目前正在对安全程序和船长在灾难发生最初几分钟内的行为进行正式审查。

“考虑到失踪人数和载客量，这其中肯定存在责任，”卡亚比亚布在谈到该船的指挥权时补充道。

渡轮运营商 Atienza Interisland Ferries 发表声明，承诺“完全透明”，并在调查继续进行的同时，为受影响的家庭提供住宿、交通和医疗保健方面的帮助。