21 die as ferry sinks in Philippines storm

The coast guard said today that 21 bodies have been recovered after a small outrigger ferry sank in rough waters in the central Philippines, raising to 23 the number of people killed by a storm.

Coast guard spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Joseph Coyme said 18 other passengers of the motorboat Mae An have been rescued since yesterday, when it capsized off Masbate island after ignoring a general warning from authorities stopping all small vessels from sailing as tropical storm Chanchu approached the region.

Coyme said it was uncertain whether five people from the Mae An, reported missing yesterday, were among those who drowned and were recovered from the stormy sea near Masbate, about 360 kilometres (225 miles) southeast of Manila.

He said the motorised outrigger left at dawn to evade authorities, and left no list of passengers that were headed to nearby Sorsogon province on the south-eastern tip of the main Philippine island of Luzon.

Early today, a swollen river broke a dike and submerged four villages under waist-deep water on Mindoro island south of Manila, while a ferry with more than 700 aboard ran aground during the storm, officials and news reports said.

Elsewhere, a couple were electrocuted yesterday when a swaying coconut tree severed an electric line in Manapla town on Negros island.

The weather bureau reported that Chanchu cut through Mindoro island, about 120 kilometres (75 miles) south of Manila, overnight yesterday, and was heading today toward the South China Sea, moving at 15 kilometres (10 miles) per hour with sustained winds of 94 kph (59 mph) and gusts of up to 120 kilometres (75 mph).