This is a list of notable maritime disasters in the Philippines. This includes both freshwater and seawater incidents. Events must include at least five deaths.
The ferry was sailing to the Visayas and was carrying around 1200-1500 passengers, mostly refugees fleeing the bombing of Manila by the Japanese during the Second World War, when it struck a mine off Corregidor Island and sank in five minutes.
Baby Princess
Unknown
12 June 1970
22
Unknown
22
The fishing boat capsized in a violent storm 300 miles southwest of Manila. The dead were devoured by sharks.[2]
MV Pilar II
Rio y Compana
19 August 1959
89
Unknown
Unknown
An overloaded inter-island cargo vessel which sank during strong waves off Cabuli Point, El Nido, Palawan.[3]
MV Don Juan was a luxury liner bound for Bacolod. At 10:30 p.m. (PST), it collided with an oil tanker, MT Tacloban, off Tablas Strait in Mindoro.[7] 15 minutes later, the vessel sank to a depth of 1,800 feet.[8] The vessel was carrying 1,004 passengers, but it was only cleared to carry 864 persons – including its crew.[9]
MV Doña Paz left from Tacloban City, Leyte, for the City of Manila, with a stopover at Catbalogan, Samar. At 10:30 p.m. (PST), the passenger vessel collided with a motor tanker, MT Vector, near Dumali Point between the provinces of Marinduque and Oriental Mindoro.[21] The vessel's manifest only listed 1,493 passengers and a 53-member crew, but survivors claimed that the vessel was carrying more than 4,000 passengers. The incident was the worst peacetime disaster and the worst in the 20th century,[19] and the vessel was even named the Asia's Titanic.[22]
The motor boat left Looc, Romblon and headed for Malay, Aklan with 174 passengers on board, mostly students. As it only had a 31-passenger capacity, the overloaded boat sank off of Aguho Point, Tablas Island in strong waves.[24]
The pagoda, which was used for the Bocaue River Festival in Bocaue, Bulacan was estimated to carrying 800 to 1000 devotees. At 8:15 p.m, the pagoda sank in the middle of the Bocaue River.[25] According to witnesses many of the passengers moved to one side of the barge after a firecracker flew towards it. The concentrated weight of the people on board tilted the barge, causing the structure to collapse and sink. It is believed that some of the fatalities were electrocuted from the equipment on board.
Unnamed boat
Unknown
24 October 1993
11
1
5
An boat travelling from Talim Island in Laguna de Bay to mainland Cardona, Rizal capsized after strong waves generated by a passing motorboat caused passengers to panic and move to one side of the vessel.[26]
Collided with Singaporean container vessel, MV Kota Suria, off Manila Bay.[27] The container ship only had a dent in its bow.[28] Sister ship to MV Don Juan.
MV Kota Suria
Pacific Int’l Line Ltd.
0
0
Unknown
MV Viva Antipolo VII
Viva Shipping Inc.
16 May 1995
62
10
142
Caught fire and sank within the vicinity of Dalahican Fish Port, Lucena.[29]
Sank after being battered by strong winds near Cadiz, Negros Occidental. The old wooden ferry, according to the investigation, was not seaworthy and was carrying more than its allowed capacity. It was also eight hours late to dock in the Port of Cadiz.[31] The Philippine Coast Guard failed to respond to the incident since the ferry had no radio on board.[32]
MV Kalibo Star
K&T Shipping Company
15 August 1997
12
32
88
An inter-island ferry travelling from Cebu to Tacloban that capsized during strong waves between Maripipi and Kawayan, Biliran.[33]
MB King Roger
Landmark Travel Agency
15 August 1997
8
0
35
A double-decker sightseeing vessel carrying foreign tourists which sank during stormy weather 400 meters from the marina of the Manila Yacht Club in Manila Bay. Authorities blamed overloading for the disaster, which killed seven Hong Kong nationals and one Japanese.[34]
The 13,935-ton, 195-metre (640 ft) long vessel sailed from Manila to Cebu during a typhoon and capsized at 12:55 p.m. (PST) near Fortune Island in Batangas.[35]
Lumban float sinking
Unknown
19 January 1999
13
Unknown
Unknown
During a fluvial procession in Lumban, Laguna, a float hit an electric cable which later fell, causing devotees aboard to get either electrocuted or drowned as they jumped into the river.[36][37]
The vessel was en route to Iloilo City from Cebu City when it hit rock formations off Bantayan Island. The collision created a hole in its hull causing its sinking.[38]
A large incendiary bomb believed to have been planted by Moro separatists exploded aboard three buses on the ferry.[39] as it crossed Panguil Bay to Ozamiz.[40] The vessel did not sink and later returned to service following repairs.
ML Annahada
Unknown
12 April 2000
69
100+
Unknown
The unlicensed, overloaded wooden ferryboat heading for Tawi-Tawi and Malaysia capsized at sea after leaving the port of Jolo, Sulu.[41][42]
MV Maria Carmela
Montenegro Shipping Lines
11 April 2002
39
6
371
Fire broke out in the cargo hold of the vessel around 7:30 a.m. (PST).[43] The vessel burned for three days until it sank in Pagbilao Island, Quezon.[44]
MV San Nicolas
San Nicholas Shipping Lines
25 May 2003
43
21
182
The collision happened at 11:45 a.m. (PST) near Limobones Point, Corregidor. MV San Nicholas was heading for Manila, while Superferry 12 was sailing for Cebu.[45]
The ferry suffered minor damage, was repaired and returned into service. However, it later caught fire at Cebu in March 2006.[47] but was repaired and continued in service until 2021.
The ferry sailed out of Manila for Cagayan de Oro via Bacolod and Iloilo City with 899 recorded passengers and crew aboard.[48] An hour after its 11 p.m. sailing, just off Corregidor Island, a television set containing a 3.6-kilogram (8-pound) TNT bomb had been placed on board in the lower, more crowded decks by a member of the Abu Sayyaf Group detonated.[49] The explosion tore through the vessel, starting a fire that engulfed the ship, which eventually sank.[50] It was the Philippines' deadliest terrorist attack and the world's deadliest terrorist attack at sea.[51]
MV Princess of the Stars capsized off the coast of San Fernando, Romblon at the height of Typhoon Frank. The ferry left Manila en route to Cebu City and was permitted to sail because the vessel was large enough to stay afloat in the typhoon's periphery. However, Frank unexpectedly changed course, placing the ferry closer to the storm.[52] According to survivors the ship ran into rough seas and capsized off the coast of Romblon.[53]
MB Don Dexter
Unknown
4 November 2008
42
10
105
Motor banca capsized near Macaraguit Island, Dimasalang, Masbate after its outrigger broke.
MB Maejan
Unknown
14 December 2008
47
30
45
Motor banca capsized near the vicinity of Aparri, Cagayan after its outrigger broke. The boat was carrying passengers in excess of its allowed capacity from Calayan Island to Aparri, and bad weather conditions contributed to its capsizing.
Wooden-hulled passenger vessel MV Catalyn B collided with FV Anatalia off the coast of Limbones Island in Maragondon, Cavite. The vessel was traveling from Manila to Tilik Port in Lubang, Occidental Mindoro when FV Anatalia crossed its path, causing it to collide with the fishing vessel and sink.[57][56]
The steel-hulled fishing vessel FV Anatalia was on its way back to the Navotas Fish Port Complex after a fishing expedition in the Turtle Islands, Tawi-Tawi and was entering Manila Bay when MV Catalyn B collided with the vessel's rear. Anatalia was damaged in the rear but remained afloat.[55][58]
MV St. Thomas Aquinas departed from Nasipit, Agusan del Norte heading for Cebu City. At approximately 9:00 p.m. (PST), it was approaching its destination via the Cebu Strait when it collided with MV Sulpicio Express Siete, a cargo ship owned by the Philippine Span Asia Carrier Corporation that was leaving port, approximately 1.2 miles (1.9 km) from Talisay, Cebu.[63] The vessel immediately began to take on water, prompting the captain to order the ship abandoned.[64] The crew hurriedly handed out life jackets as hundreds of passengers jumped overboard. Within 30 minutes, the ship had sunk. At the time of the collision, St. Thomas Aquinas was carrying 715 passengers (58 were infants) and 116 crew members. Many passengers were asleep at the time or otherwise had trouble finding their way to the deck in the dark.[63]
The sinking occurred en route from Ormoc to Pilar, Cebu in Ponson Island, among the Camotes Islands.[65] According to initial reports, the motor banca capsized due to overload with passengers and cargo and that the boat took a sharp turn. The Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) later stated that the boat capsized not because of overloading, but "the negligent operations of the captain".[66] Authorities placed the final count of death toll to 62, while 158 survived.[67]
Capsized due to squalls between Iloilo Strait and Guimaras Strait intensified by tropical monsoon winds and rains.[69] The Chi-Chi and Keziah collided and capsized after they were hit by a squall, while the third Jenny Vince figured in a separate accident and also capsized.[69]
The fishing vessel was on its way to the Navotas Fish Port in Metro Manila from a fishing expedition in Mapun, Tawi-Tawi when it collided with the Hong Kong-flagged bulk carrier MV Vienna Wood N in the vicinity of Mamburao, Occidental Mindoro. Inclement weather may have contributed to the collision of the two vessels. None of the 14 individuals onboard the fishing vessel were found.[71]
MV Vienna Wood N
A. M. Nomikos Transworld Maritime Agencies
0
0
20
The Hong Kong-flagged bulk carrier MV Vienna Wood N was on its way to Australia from Subic Bay Freeport when it collided with the fishing vessel Liberty 5 in the vicinity of Mamburao, Occidental Mindoro.[70] A hold departure order was given to the 20 crew of the bulk carrier by a court in Mamburao while the Philippine Coast Guard filed criminal charges against crew and owners of the vessel.[72] The charges were dismissed by prosecutors after the owners of the fishing vessel and the owners of the bulk carrier reached a settlement worth PH₱ 40 million. The vessel was allowed to leave the Philippines on 17 September 2020.[73]
The ferry left Polillo Island at 5 a.m. and caught fire, allegedly starting from the engine room, at approximately 1,000 yards from the Port of Real. The vessel was then towed to Baluti Island in Real, Quezon.[75]
Overloaded motor banca capsized en route to Talim Island from Binangonan, Rizal when it was hit by strong winds 45 meters from the shores of Laguna de Bay, causing the passengers to panic and move to the left side.
^Syjuco-Tan, Maria Felisa (ed.). "Calamities and Disasters". Highlights of Philippine History Volume 2: Presidencies from Quirino to Macapagal (1948-1964). Pantas Publishing. p. 152.
^Syjuco-Tan, Maria Felisa (ed.). "Calamities and Disasters". Highlights of Philippine History Volume 4: Presidencies of Corazon C. Aquino (1986-1992) and Fidel V. Ramos (1992–1998). Pantas Publishing. p. 263.
^"NEWS CAPSULES". Deseret News. December 4, 1994. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved August 20, 2013.
^Syjuco-Tan, Maria Felisa (ed.). "Calamities and Disasters". Highlights of Philippine History Volume 4: Presidencies of Corazon C. Aquino (1986-1992) and Fidel V. Ramos (1992–1998). Pantas Publishing. pp. 288–289.
^Syjuco-Tan, Maria Felisa (ed.). "Calamities and Disasters". Highlights of Philippine History Volume 4: Presidencies of Corazon C. Aquino (1986-1992) and Fidel V. Ramos (1992–1998). Pantas Publishing. p. 289.