Death toll from Cebu ship collision rises to 26

MANILA -- At least 26 people are dead following the sinking of the M/V St. Thomas Aquinas off Talisay City, Cebu Friday night. At least 629 have been rescued overnight while search and rescue efforts continue for 215 passengers and crew who remain unaccounted for, including two sea marshals on board the ship. The vessel was bound for Cebu as a stopover port on its way from Surigao and the Nasipit port to Manila when the accident happened. Citing 2GO's official manifest, the Philippine Coast Guard said 752 passengers and 118 crew or a total of 841 people were on board the St. Thomas Aquinas. The figure is well below the ship's 904-person capacity. The Coast Guard has deployed a helicopter to conduct an aerial survey. Together with the Philippine Navy and commercial ships and fishing vessels, the Coast Guard is scouring the waters off Talisay and the vicinity of the port of Cebu for more survivors. The Coast Guard has sent technical divers and additional medical teams as well as oil spill response teams from the Marine Bioprotection Command to help with search and rescue efforts and to contain an oil spill in the area. Meanwhile, survivors are being attended to in hospitals and receiving shock debriefing in Cebu City. The 2GO group has activated its emergency onsite operations center and has pledged to assist the survivors. The Special Board of Marine Inquiry will launch investigations into the ship collision once rescue and retrieval efforts are completed. ANC Headlines, August 17, 2013