MANILA, Philippines (Updated 9:45 a.m.) — Five women and two men died after a vessel carrying 124 passengers excluding crew members heading to Real, Quezon caught fire early Monday morning, according to the Philippine Coast Guard.
The PCG said in a bulletin that four are still unaccounted for while 105 were rescued from the Mercraft 2 that left Polillo Island at around 5 a.m. and was reportedly just 1,000 yards away from the port of Real when a fire broke out from its engine room.
Rescue operations and firefighting headed by PCG personnel in Real in coordination with the local government there and other Roro vessels are still underway.
Mercraft 2 has been towed to the nearest shoreline of Baluti Island in Real, Quezon. — Xave Gregorio with a report from Patricia Lourdes Viray
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