Five people died and 86 remain missing after the passenger ferry MV June Aster caught fire off the coast of Coron, Palawan, on Wednesday evening. The Philippine Coast Guard rescued 43 survivors as search and rescue operations continued amid rough weather and heavy seas.
Tragedy at Sea: How the MV June Aster Fire Unfolded
The disaster began shortly after dusk in the waters off Palawan. The Philippine Coast Guard District Palawan received an emergency report at 6:45 p.m. on Wednesday, September 9, stating that a passenger vessel was engulfed in flames approximately 1.2 nautical miles northeast of Barangay Marcilla in Coron, according to the Coast Guard report.
The ship, operated by Atienza Interisland Shipping Line, had departed from Baseco port in Metro Manila bound for the tourist-destination municipality of Coron. According to the official vessel manifest cited by authorities, the ferry was carrying 117 passengers and 17 crew members, bringing the total number of people on board to 134.
Survivors recalled a sudden and terrifying escalation after noticing trouble below deck. Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson Commodore Noemie Cayabyab told a briefing on Thursday afternoon that passengers heard unusual sounds and saw smoke before the situation turned catastrophic.
“a loud explosion [from the cargo hold] and they saw smoke. It was followed by the fire. … Seconds later the fire suddenly spread.”
Commodore Noemie Cayabyab, Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson, via Nikkei Asia
Rescue operations faced immediate hurdles. Cayabyab noted that responders were severely hampered because it was a dark night and the weather was not good, the waves were strong
, preventing rescue teams from immediately boarding the burned-out hull of the ship.
Search Operations and the Mounting Missing Persons Count
While early counts varied slightly across local reports, authorities confirmed that 43 individuals survived the disaster, with five fatalities recovered and 87 others remaining missing.
The vast discrepancy between the manifest and the confirmed survivors leaves a grim tally for rescue crews combing the vicinity waters. The number of possible missing is 86. We based it from the manifest submitted by the captain of the vessel,
Cayabyab stated during her press briefing, explaining how authorities calculated the unaccounted individuals.
Despite the high number of missing persons, officials expressed a small window of hope that not all unaccounted passengers perished in the flames or deep water. Cayabyab noted that some individuals on board might have managed to swim ashore in the dark and were currently sheltering with local coastal communities.
Rescued individuals were temporarily sheltered at the Barangay Turda Covered Court in Coron, where local disaster management teams processed survivors. The confirmed casualties were slated for transfer to the Coron Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office for proper disposition, according to the Philippine Coast Guard.
Emergency Response and Environmental Precautions
A massive multi-agency deployment swung into action following the disaster. The Coast Guard coordinated rescue efforts alongside Coast Guard Sub-Station Turda, Coast Guard Sub-Station Tara, the Bureau of Fire Protection in Coron, the local government of Coron, and shipping lines with vessels berthed at the Port of Coron.
Specialized units, including personnel from the Coast Guard’s Maritime Environmental Protection Unit in Northeastern Palawan and the Coast Guard Special Operations Group, rushed to the scene. Additionally, the vessel BRP Suluan (MRRV-4406) departed from the Port of San Fernando in El Nido to provide direct operational assistance in the disaster zone.
Environmental concerns also prompted swift precautionary measures. The Maritime Environmental Protection unit mobilized oil spill response equipment to guard against potential contamination from hazardous materials leaking into the surrounding waters. The Coast Guard District Palawan emphasized its commitment to mitigating potential maritime and environmental hazards while systematic search operations continue.
Atienza Interisland Shipping Line released a statement on Thursday afternoon addressing the maritime disaster. The company asserted that the MV June Aster had successfully passed its pre-departure safety inspection before leaving Metro Manila, though investigators have not yet determined the exact trigger of the conflagration.
The company added that it was committed to full transparency
and was fully cooperating with government and maritime personnel to establish the cause of the fire. Maritime investigators and coast guard personnel continue their inquiry into the disaster, while search and rescue units work around the clock in Palawan waters.
