MANILA, 28 February 2004 — Twelve hours after fire tore through a Philippine ferry yesterday, at least 110 people remained unaccounted for. The fire killed one person and sent many passengers into the sea to escape the flames.
“We have not given up hope of finding more survivors but there’s also the possibility that some of them were trapped inside the boat,” coast guard spokesman Lt. Armand Balilo told reporters after 766 people were rescued. Fire raged on parts of the stricken ferry as night fell and smoke could be seen rising from the ship.
Rescuers said they would have to wait for up to two days to let the vessel cool down before they could begin searching for bodies. The 155-meter-long ship listed onto its starboard side after being towed from the mouth of Manila Bay to Bataan Island.
The coast guard and owners of the Super Ferry 14 disagreed on the number of missing and the number of passengers on board when disaster struck.
