World

5 dead, 900 people rescued from Philippine ferry

by albertacowpoke | September 6, 2009 at 06:03 am

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Early Sunday morning a Super 9 Ferry sank in the Southern Phillipines. The ferry had 1000 passengers on board. 900 people were rescued, 60 are missing or unaccounted for. Five dead have been confirmed.

Ferry accidents are common in that part of the world, mostly due to poor maintenance, tropical storms and weak enforcement of safety regulations.

The Ferry began to sink early Sunday morning about nine miles (15 kilometers) off Zamboanga del Norte province.

Navy ships were deployed including one US civilian helicopter provided by US Forces which were conducting anti-terrorist training in the area.

Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro said. American troops providing counterterrorism training to Philippine soldiers in the region deployed a civilian helicopter and five boats, some carrying paramedics, to help, U.S. Col. William Coultrup said.

Passengers were transferred to commercial ships and Navy ships in the area. Officials at this point have 60 passengers unaccounted for and hope that they didn't drift in the waters.

One Canadian, Jeffrey Predchuz, was among the rescued passengers.

A special thanks to Rhonda Magnus for putting me on to this story.

MANILA, Philippines — A ferry carrying nearly 1,000 passengers sank in the southern Philippines early Sunday, leaving at least five dead and more than 60 missing.

The Superferry 9 began to list before dawn about nine miles (15 kilometers) off Zamboanga del Norte province, rousing terrified passengers from their sleep and sending many jumping into the water, coast guard chief Admiral Wilfredo Tamayo said.

Rescuers transferred 900 of 968 passengers and crewmen to two nearby commercial ships, a navy gunboat and a fishing boat, he said. A search was under way for more than 60 people who remained missing, Tamayo said, adding that they may have drifted with their life jackets or have been rescued but were not yet listed as survivors.

"We really hope they're just unaccounted for due to the confusion," Tamayo told The Associated Press.

A Canadian tourist, Jeffrey Predchuz, was among the survivors, officials said.