Ferry capsizes in the Philippines, killing dozens
July 2, 2015
A passenger ferry turned over in rough waters on Thursday, killing at least 36 people. Search and rescue teams were dispatched to Ormoc city in the Leyte province, 560 kilometers (350 miles) southeast of Manila, Commander Armand Balilo told dpa news agency.
At least 118 people on board the Kim Nirvana survived, the Associated Press reported. A report on Manila radio said 21 people were still missing, but the numbers could not be confirmed.
Some 173 people were on the boat, which overturned one kilometer away from Ormoc, Ciriaco Tolibao, a disaster management official, told AFP news agency.
Poor maintenance and loose regulation of sea vessels in the Philippines has led to frequent accidents and claimed hundreds of lives in recent years.
The country witnessed its worst disaster in 1987, when the Dona Paz ferry collided with an oil tanker, killing 4,300 people. The tragedy was also the worst peacetime naval disaster in the world.
mg/kms (AFP, dpa, Reuters)