Ferry collides with cargo ship in Philippines —
Volunteers search for victims near the damaged cargo ship Sulpicio Express Siete on Saturday, August 17, a day after it collided with a passenger ferry in Talisay, in the Cebu province of the Philippines. The ferry, which sank, is thought to have been carrying about 700 passengers.
Ferry collides with cargo ship in Philippines —
Philippine Navy personnel lift a victim from one of the floating life rafts during rescue operations on August 17. The two ships collided around 9 p.m. Friday.
Ferry collides with cargo ship in Philippines —
A survivor on a stretcher is taken to a hospital in Cebu City on August 17.
Ferry collides with cargo ship in Philippines —
A medic carries 3-month-old Trisia Mae Kumaro as her mother steps out of an ambulance at the hospital on August 17.
Ferry collides with cargo ship in Philippines —
The ferry, MV St. Thomas Aquina, was coming from Butuan City when it collided with the cargo ship in the Mactan Channel about 2 miles northwest of Cebu City, the capital of Cebu province.
Ferry collides with cargo ship in Philippines —
A young survivor is helped into the hospital on August 17.
Ferry collides with cargo ship in Philippines —
An ambulance carrying more survivors arrives at the hospital on August 17.
Ferry collides with cargo ship in Philippines —
A survivor in a wheelchair is assisted as he arrives at the hospital on August 17.
Ferry collides with cargo ship in Philippines —
Crew members from the cargo ship inspect the damage to their ship on August 17.
Ferry collides with cargo ship in Philippines —
A cargo vessel is docked at sea after colliding with and sinking a ferry on Friday, August 16.
Ferry collides with cargo ship in Philippines
Story highlights
NEW: 38 people have died and 82 remain missing, the Philippine coast guard says
NEW: 750 passengers have been rescued
Rescue crews continue searching for survivors
Their ferry hit a cargo ship off Cebu City in the southern Philippines
CNN —
Two days after the ferry they were on sank after colliding with a cargo ship, 82 people remained unaccounted for Sunday in waters between southern Philippine islands, a Coast Guard official said.
Authorities have found the bodies of 38 people and rescued another 750, said Coast Guard spokeswoman Dawn Baterbonia.
The incident occurred around 9 p.m. Friday in the Mactan Channel about 2 miles northwest of Cebu City, the capital of Cebu province.
The passenger ship – MV St. Thomas Aquinas – was coming from nearby Butuan City and the cargo ship – the Sulpicio, which had about 20 people aboard – was leaving Cebu for the province of Davao in Mindanao.
The passenger ferry sank, but not before sending out a distress call heard by Coast Guard officials.
The cargo vessel involved in the crash – along with Navy, Coast Guard and commercial vessels – was helping in the rescue efforts.
The incident recalls one of the worst maritime disasters in world history dating to December 20, 1987, also off the Philippines.
Between 1,700 and more than 4,000 people were killed when the ferry Dona Paz collided with the tanker MT Victor. The number of casualties has varied; many claim the Dona Paz was extremely overcrowded.
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CNN’s Greg Botelho and Sara Mazloumsaki contributed to this report.
