Ferry passengers injured following collision with cargo ship off Cebu City, Philippines

Thirty-five passengers on a fast ferry suffered injuries after their vessel collided with a cargo ship in the waters off Cebu City in the central Philippines on Sunday, May 21.

Reports stated that the catamaran ferry St Jhudiel was approaching its final destination of Cebu City after having earlier departed Leyte province when it struck the cargo vessel LCT Poseidon in Cebu’s Mactan Channel at around 14:40 local time on Sunday.

A tug sailed to the area in response to the collision and towed the damaged ferry to Cebu to allow the passengers to safely disembark.

Local emergency response officials confirmed that 35 of the ferry’s 185 passengers suffered varying degrees of injury. Some passengers said that they were thrown from their seats due to the force of the impact.

Eighteen injured passengers were later brought to various hospitals to undergo treatment.

SuperCat Fast Ferry Corporation, owner and operator of St Jhudiel, has since issued an official statement apologising for the harm and inconvenience caused by the collision.

The company assured that it is cooperating with the proper authorities in identifying the probable causes of the mishap.