Manila [Philippines], January 27: As the ferry began to tilt sharply to one side in the darkness of night off the southern Philippines, many passengers instinctively lunged toward the other side in a desperate attempt.
The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) continued its search on January 27 for 10 people still missing at sea after a ferry carrying hundreds of people sank off southern Philippines the previous day, while the death toll rose to 18.
Reuters quoted PCG spokesperson Noemie Cayabyab as saying that the total number of people on board the ferry was 344, not 359 as previously reported, due to a review revealing that 15 people on the list had not boarded the ferry. The number of people rescued remains at 316, while the cause of the ferry sinking is still unclear.
Aquino Sajili, a survivor of the incident, recounted that he was leaning against the railing of the MV Trisha Kerstin 3 ferry and called a friend, asking him to alert the PCG because he thought the ferry was about to sink.
"Ten minutes later, I heard a sudden, loud cracking sound. Then the ferry started to capsize," said Sajili, a 53-year-old lawyer from Zamboanga City.
He recounted that in the midst of the panic, many women and children were screaming and crying. He said he was accompanying a client to court, who later died.
"Many of the fatalities were elderly women. The ferry was very large, so when you were underneath, you needed strength to surface," he said.
Initially, a passenger woke Mr. Sajili when the three-story ferry began to tilt dangerously. "He warned us and gave us life vests. No one on the crew warned us. It was the passengers who helped others stay calm and told them not to jump off the ferry," Mr. Sajili recounted.
Mr. Sajili clung to a section of the ferry that remained afloat until the very last moment, before letting go and swimming toward a life raft. However, the raft capsized before he reached it, as many people desperately tried to climb aboard.
"Ultimately, we had no choice but to cling to the overturned life raft and drift on the sea for more than three hours," he recounted.
The first rescue boats arrived around 3:30 a.m. on January 26, Sajili said, although those adrift on the water had to wait longer.
Several groups of survivors waited in turn for rescue by fishing boats as well as vessels sent by the ferry's owner, Aleson Shipping Lines.
Mr. Sajili also refuted claims of rough seas at the time the ferry sank, saying the waves only intensified after they had been at sea for several hours. After speaking with other survivors, he suggested that a lawsuit against the ferry's owner was highly likely.
Aleson Shipping Lines has not commented. The company previously operated the Lady Mary Joy 3 ferry on the same route, which caught fire in 2023, killing 31 people.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper
