Vessel sinks near Batangas island; 25 people missing

(Update 13 - 10 am) A roll-on roll-off (RORO) ferry carrying 88 people sank off San Agapito, Verde Island as it neared Batangas City Saturday night. The Batangas City-bound M/V Baleno 9 owned by Besta Shipping Lines, sailed from Calapan City in Oriental Mindoro when it sank past 10 p.m., Saturday near the island in the Isla Verde Passage. [See: Accident prone areas at sea identified] The area from Isla Verde to Balayan Bay is known to marine scientists as "the center of the center of marine biodiversity," with more marine shore diversity than any other place in the world. GMA News quoted survivors as saying they heard a loud thump and felt the ship listing. They said everything happened so fast they had no time to put on life vests. A partial list of survivors brought to Batangas Port included Joseph Aldaba Jr., Eric Glenn, Edison Escares, Francisco Barbajano, Rona Avila, Michael Talipay, Alberto Perez, Reynaldo Madrigal, Eduardo Quimbo, and Edwin Hidalbo. Those who were identified only with either their first names or surnames were Archie, Perry, and Buboy; Hermogenes Jr., Delos Reyes, Cajoyong, and two with surname Peñaranda. [See: Maritime safety not a priority in RP; coast guard struggles to stay afloat] Sixty three have been saved, according to the Coast Guard, with 25 people still missing. DzBB earlier said only 20 passengers were on the vessel's manifest. The ferry, which can accommodate up to 268 people, was not overloaded, according to PCG spokesman Lt. Commander Armand Balilo. Search and rescue operations led by the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) started at about 11:55 p.m., Saturday. Three vessels, including PCG's BRP Davao del Norte, were dispatched to the area for the operations. At 7 a.m., Sunday, an Islander plane of the Philippine Navy from Cavite province flew to Isla Verde to aid the operations, according to Navy spokesman Lt. Col. Edgard Arevalo. He said BRP Iloilo, a Navy ship, was also on its way to the area. The RORO vessel tilted and finally sank after water entered its bow ramp and filled the ship, according to Balilo. "Pumasok ang tubig sa bow ramp naapektuhan ang stability ng barko. Nung tumagilid siya, hindi na siya nakabawi at lumubog na." Bettila Santiago, a passenger of a Montenegro Lines ship who saw the incident, told GMA News on Saturday that the ferry careened out of control after it was battered by huge waves. The sea mishap happened barely two days after a wooden-hulled ferry bound for Lubang Island in Occidental Mindoro collided with a metal-hulled fishing boat off Limbones Island in Cavite province. [See: Authorities lose hope in finding survivors in Cavite sea mishap] Three people were killed in the incident. Twenty-four others remain missing. [See: Major marine mishaps in the Philippines] - ARCS/ HGS/LBG, GMANews.TV