Dozens dead as ferry sinks in Philippines: police

Thirty-nine people were killed on Tuesday when a ferry capsized in a freak accident in the central Philippines, the local police chief said, the latest in a line of maritime disasters to hit the country.

The ferry, with 119 people listed on board, keeled over after being struck by a freak wind off the island of Masbate, according to Senior Superintendent Ruben Sindac.

"The Don Dexter Kathleen capsized due to a freak accident, it was hit by a high wind despite fair weather and calm waters," Sindac told local radio.

He said rescue services recovered 39 bodies while 76 survivors had been pulled from the water.

Sindac did not rule out the possibility that there may have been more people onboard the ferry.

It is a common practice for inter-island ferries to be overloaded with last-minute passengers boarding without being listed in the manifest.

The navy, coast guard and local authorities were continuing to search the area between Masbate and Sorsogon port in southern Luzon, he added.

The coastguard described the vessel as a large wooden-hulled outrigger, the main mode of transport between the 7,000 islands that make up the Southeast Asian archipelago.

Sindac said the ferry had just left the port town of Dimasalang on the north east coast of Masbate for Sorsogon port 80 kilometers (50 miles) away.

Second Lieutenant Jeffrey Collado, the local coast guard chief, said four people were still missing despite fears that there may be more still unaccounted for.

Collado said the ferry was hit by a "freak whirlwind" that rose suddenly when the ferry left port.

He said 76 people were rescued by boats that rushed to the site.

Navy, coast guard and local authorities are searching for any more survivors, Sindac added.

Coast guard chief of staff Captain Efren Evangelista said the weather and waters were calm and that there was no reason for them to stop the vessel from setting sail.

"Of course, we will be conducting an investigation of this, but for now we will be concentrating on the search and rescue operations," he added.

The accident comes four months after the 23,000 tonne inter-island ferry, Princess of the Stars, capsized during a typhoon off the central island of Sibuyan carrying 850 passengers and crew.

Only 57 passengers and crew survived the accident which was the worst maritime disaster in the Philippines for 20 years.

Mishaps involving ferries are common in this archipelago where many poor people rely on small, poorly-maintained vessels to travel between islands.