Virma Simonette Rivera
Reporting from Manila

We can bring you some more lines from a Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson, who says a survivor of the fire heard a loud explosion coming from the boat's hold compartment

Within seconds of the explosion, the fire had spread, the spokesperson says. They add that the ship was carrying five motorbikes, one electric car, a fork lift and a pick-up van.

Asked if it was a terrorist attack, the spokesperson says: “I cannot give a conclusion, the investigation is ongoing.”

They also say that on top of the Coast Guard and the army's help, there has been private vessel owners and local fisherman joining the search since last night.

A spokesperson later said they are hopeful they can enter the boat tonight.

Image source, EPA

We've now heard from Atienza Interisland Ferries - the owner of the MV June Aster that caught fire - which has expressed "profound sadness and deep concern" following the fire.

A spokesperson for the company says it is "devastated" to report that passengers are missing and have offered "sympathies and thoughts" to those affected by the incident.

"We are working around the clock and have mobilised all available resources to manage this crisis," a spokesperson says.

Atienza Interisland Ferries says it is co-operating fully with local authorities, including in search and rescue operations, and that those who were rescued have been transported to hospital.

It also says it is co-operating with the government to determine the cause of the blaze, and says it is "committed to full transparency".

During the update, the Coast Guard spokeswoman spoke of the ferry's journey.

She says the ferry departed the Port of Baseco in Manila at 20:13 local time (13:13 BST) on 8 September. The estimated time of arrival for the destination, the Port of Coron, was 18:00 on 9 September.

She says they received a report of an incident at 18:45 (11:45 BST), and the Philippine Coast Guard "immediately" deployed its assets, responding in five minutes.

Earlier, passenger Roland Lerma said he was in the water for two hours before rescue came.

The boat was built in 2002 and has a 306 passenger capacity, plus 27 crew members, Cayabyab tells the news conference.

The Philippine Coast Guard spokeswoman confirms there are 43 survivors of the ferry fire, and five causalities.

She says there were 117 passengers on the ferry, and 17 crew members. From these numbers, she says the "possible missing" stands at 86 but adds that this is a live number which can change.

Cayabyab says they'll be conducting a "comprehensive investigation", but tells the news conference that the vessel underwent a compliance inspection on 10 March this year - which includes checking the number of life jackets on board.

Cayabyab says the "fire is still not out" on the ferry and smoke is "still visible" and emanating from the vessel.

The Coast Guard spokeswoman shows aerial footage showing the current position of the vessel, which remains approximately 7.6 nautical miles (14km) off the coastal village of Turda

Image source, Philippine Coast Guard

Image source, GMA News

In the last few minutes, Philippine Coast Guard spokeswoman Commodore Naomi Cayabyab has been giving an update on the ferry incident and the ongoing search and rescue operations.

We'll bring you the top lines from her briefing in the next few posts

The waves today are not as strong as they were last evening, Philippine Coast Guard spokeswoman Noemi Cayabyab has said, adding that the rescue team has been trying to "maximise the good weather".

But while the fire has been put out, thick smoke has been blowing out of the ferry, which is a challenge for the coastguard, Cayabyab explains.

"What we plan to do is to enter the boat and to look for things that needed to be checked. That’s a limitation for us now," she has told a local television outlet earlier.

The ferry's position has shifted significantly because of earlier winds, she says. Right now, it's about 7.6 nautical miles (14km) from Turda village.

As we've been reporting, rescuers are still looking for at least 86 people after a vessel travelling from Manila to Coron, in the Palawan province, caught fire.

The BBC's Jake Kwon explains in this video what we know about the fire so far.

Virma Simonette Rivera
Reporting from Manila

Roland Lerma, 30, travelled to Manila with his five neighbours before heading to work in Coron. Three of his colleagues are now in hospital on the island, and two are missing.

The construction worker from Leyte province says it was after dinner when they heard a "sudden bang, then there was a dark, thick smoke" from the boat.

"After a minute, a fire broke out. I couldn’t see anything. It was also hot. People started shouting and crying. They panicked," he tells me.

Roland says he ran near to the edge of the boat to jump, but slipped before reaching the edge. "When I was on the floor, people were trampling all over me," he recalls.

He eventually managed to jump off the boat, using his belongings to help him float, and says he saw children jumping off too.

They were in the water for two hours before rescue came. "If it was delayed, I would definitely have died last night," he says.

Roland says the boat was old, and no one was wearing life jackets.

Image source, Virma Simonette Rivera/BBC

Image source, EPA

At least five people have died and 86 people remain unaccounted for after a fire broke out on a ferry in the Philippines.

At approximately 18:45 local time on Wednesday (11:45 BST), a blaze engulfed the MV June Aster as it transported 134 passengers and crew to the popular tourist hotspot of Coron, the country's Coast Guard says.

Maritime accidents are common in the Philippines but officials fear this could be one of the country's worst, with nearly 90 people still missing.

A "whole-of-government" approach is being adopted for search and rescue operations, a spokesperson for the Coast Guard says. It also warns that poor weather is posing a challenge for personnel involved in the search, with strong waves in the area.

The BBC's Virma Simonette Rivera, reporting from Manila, says passengers' families face an anxious wait for updates on their relatives.

Coron Island, off the mainland, is known for its beautiful scenery of towering cliffs and crystal clear waters, which attract scuba divers from all over.

We'll continue to bring you live updates as more information comes in.

Virma Simonette Rivera
Reporting from Manila

The Coast Guard says they have spoken to survivors, many of whom are still unable to discuss the horrors they witnessed.

"We have tried to get stories from the survivors but there are still in shock," Coast Guard spokeswoman Commodore Noemi Cayabyab says on local TV.

"Some passengers were not wearing life vests," she adds.

Virma Simonette Rivera
Reporting from Manila

Image source, Philippine Coast Guard

After speaking with one of the surviving passengers, the Coast Guard says the fire started in the cargo haul.

"Based on our inquiry with one of the survivors, the fire started in the cargo hold," Commodore Noemi Cayabyab, a Coast Guard spokeswoman, tells local TV.

A cargo hold is the compartment or room for storing containers or goods while at sea.

"After a couple of minutes, fire started to spread," she adds.

The fire was first reported at 18:45 local time (11:45 BST) on Wednesday night by a staff member of Atienza Shipping Lines, which is the owner of the boat, the spokeswoman said.

Two Chilean nationals were among the 43 passengers rescued, a Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson told reporters a short while ago, according to a Reuters report.

We'll bring you more updates on the passengers when we get them.

Images taken by the Coast Guard early Thursday show the aftermath of the deadly fire that tore through a passenger ferry that had departed Manila.

Rescue operations continue as many people remain missing. Authorities say strong winds have hindered their searches.

Image source, Philippine Coast Guard

Image source, Philippine Coast Guard

Image source, Philippine Coast Guard

Virma Simonette Rivera
Reporting from Manila

Seven rescued passengers have been taken to a hospital in Culion, a bigger neighbouring island, according to the region's Department of Social Welfare and Development.

The department says its staff members are talking to patients at the Culion Sanitarium and General Hospital, as well as their families, to determine their condition and the assistance they need.

The BBC understands that the passengers who were brought to Culion were "more serious cases".

Compared to the Coron District Hospital, the hospital at Culion has more bed capacity and more comprehensive healthcare services.

Image source, Getty Images

Authorities say there are 86 missing passengers aboard the MV June Aster, which caught fire on Wednesday en route to Coron, Palawan province.

But they've cautioned that the tally may change - and a look at past ship disasters show just how tricky it is to determine the actual number of people on board when tragedy strikes.

Sometimes, people listed on the manifest never boarded the vessel. But what's more often the case is that many of the passengers on the ship are not listed on its manifest, which complicates search-and-rescue efforts.

In January, MV Trisha Kerstin 3, a ship carrying more than 370 people sank off the waters of the southern Philippines. At least 66 people died in the disaster.

Of the 372 people on board, more than 100 were not listed in the manifest, authorities said.

Something similar happened Lady Mary Joy 3, a ferry which caught fire in the southern Philippines in 2023, killing 31 people. Officials said at the time that an inaccurate manifest had posed difficulties, as they found additional passengers not on the list.

Virma Simonette Rivera
Reporting from Manila

Image source, Ann Magbanua

Earlier we reported that one of the passengers aboard the MV June Aster was Marlon Magbanua.

I've just spoken to his wife, Anelyn, who said that Magbanua, a fisherman, had gone to Manila earlier this week to visit their two children who are enrolled in a Catholic school in the capital.

"He spent a couple of days there. He even sent me their picture," she says.

Magbanua's ferry was supposed to arrive at the port around 19:00, and Anelyn and her two-year-old son went to bed.

But around 22:00, Magbanua's cousin arrived at the house to inform her that the ferry had caught fire.

"I can't describe what I am feeling right now. I have been crying and praying since last night."

Earlier today, when she heard that someone had seen a "Marlon Magbanua" among the rescued, Anelyn pleaded with officials in her village to drive her to Coron hospital.

"My two-year-old son and I are outside the hospital as we speak," she says. "We have nothing but ourselves. It has also been raining."

Officials have since told her that they have not seen her husband.

If you're just joining us, here's what to know about the deadly fire that broke out on the MV June Aster, a ferry that departed Manila on Wednesday.

• At least five people have died and 86 are missing, though authorities say that these figures may change as search operations continue. A total of 43 people have been rescued so far
• The ferry departed Manila and was bound for Coron, in Palawan province. It's a popular holiday destination for both local and foreign tourists, known for its beaches and WW2 shipwrecks
• It caught fire about 1.2 nautical miles (2.2km) off the coast of Marcilla village, in Coron
• Rescue operations have been hindered by strong waves, which caused the vessel to drift away, authorities say
• Families of missing passengers tell the BBC that they're anxiously waiting for news about their loved ones

Stay with us as we bring you the latest.

Virma Simonette Rivera
Reporting from Manila

Image source, Supplied

Ann Magbanua is anxiously awaiting news of her brother, Marlon, who was a passenger aboard the MV June Aster when the ferry caught fire.

Magbanua tells the BBC that her brother's wife is on her way to the hospital, because she had heard from others that he had been seen there.

"Hope the weather favours us," she says.

Search and rescue operations are still ongoing at the site of the ferry fire. Authorities said a while ago that 43 people have been rescued.

Image source, Getty Images

The ferry had been headed to Coron, in the province of Palawan.

Coron, which attracts both local and foreign tourists, is famed for its limestone cliffs, sandy beaches and turquoise waters. It's also popular among divers for the World War II shipwreck sites.

As we reported earlier, ferry accidents are not uncommon in the Philippines, where many travel by sea across the country's many islands.

But deadly accidents like what we've seen today are rare in Coron - until the recent fire.

In 2024, all 14 crew members of a cargo ship were rescued after the vessel sank off Coron.

That same year, more than 300 people were affected after a cargo-passenger ship ran aground while preparing to depart Coron Port, but in the end all passengers managed to disembark safely.