Ferry fire off Coron leaves 5 dead, 87 unaccounted for in Philippines
At least five people have died and 87 remain missing after the M/V June Aster caught fire near Coron, Palawan, Wednesday evening. Rescue operations continue as authorities search waters off the popular tourist destination.
Omar Al Nuaimi
Ferry fire off Coron leaves 5 dead, 87 unaccounted for in Philippines
At least five people have died and 87 remain unaccounted for after a passenger ferry operated by Atienza Interisland Ferries Inc. caught fire off Coron, Palawan, as rescuers continued searching Thursday for survivors in waters near one of the Philippines' most visited tourism destinations.
The M/V June Aster, a vessel with a gross tonnage of 490.49 built in 2002, was carrying 134 people — 117 passengers and 17 crew members — when fire broke out at approximately 6:45 pm Wednesday in waters roughly 1.2 nautical miles northeast of Barangay Marcilla in Coron municipality, according to the Philippine Coast Guard.
The vessel had departed Manila and was en route to Coron when the blaze erupted. As of Thursday morning, 42 people had been rescued — 38 passengers and four crew members — while five casualties had been brought ashore. The remaining 87 people were still unaccounted for, though authorities emphasized the figures remained provisional as search operations continued.
Coast Guard spokesperson Capt. Noemi Cayabyab told local media the numbers were live figures that could change as rescue efforts progressed. Coast Guard footage showed the ferry completely engulfed in flames, complicating efforts to approach and search the vessel.
Major rescue operation deployed
Philippine Coast Guard vessels and personnel, operating under Republic Act 9993 which mandates the service to enforce maritime safety regulations and conduct search and rescue operations, were deployed to the scene alongside the Bureau of Fire Protection, Coron disaster-response teams and local authorities. The Coast Guard's BRP Suluan proceeded from El Nido to assist, while volunteer fishermen and other vessels helped transport survivors ashore.
Of the 42 rescued individuals, six had been discharged from medical care, 33 remained hospitalized and three were in critical condition, according to Coron health officials cited by GMA News. Authorities had not yet identified the five fatalities by Thursday morning.
The cause of the fire remained under investigation. Cayabyab said authorities would examine the circumstances, including questions about the vessel's condition and maintenance, though she noted passenger vessels undergo regular inspection. No oil spill had been reported as of Thursday morning.
Impact on major tourism hub
The disaster struck in Coron, a major Philippine tourism destination that welcomed 341,546 visitors in 2024 — 55.8 percent domestic tourists and 44.2 percent foreign tourists. The municipality is famous for its beaches, diving sites, shipwrecks and island-hopping routes, with Kayangan Lake considered its most popular attraction and hailed as one of the cleanest lakes in the Philippines.
The incident highlights the critical role ferries play in the Philippines, an archipelago of over 7,100 islands where inter-island vessels serve as one of the main forms of transport for millions of Filipinos. Ferries remain essential because they are significantly cheaper than air travel, connecting island provinces and serving as vital transport for locals, tourists and goods across the nation's 183 accredited shipping companies operating 1,953 passenger ferries under Maritime Industry Authority oversight.
Context of maritime safety concerns
The fire comes amid ongoing concerns about maritime safety in Philippine waters. The Maritime Industry Authority investigated 214 maritime accidents in 2021, the most in five years and more than double the number investigated the year before. The Philippines experienced the deadliest peacetime maritime disaster in history in 1987, when the MV Doña Paz collided with an oil tanker in the Tablas Strait, killing an estimated 4,386 people.
Authorities are continuing to reconcile the passenger manifest with rescued survivors and people who may have reached shore independently. The Coast Guard urged families who believe relatives were aboard the June Aster to contact authorities to help establish a complete accounting of all passengers.
Search-and-rescue teams continued operations Thursday while firefighters worked to contain the blaze. Coron authorities released emergency contacts, including the Coron District Hospital emergency hotline and the municipal disaster-response office, for families searching for information about relatives.
