Hundreds Missing After Typhoon Hits Ferry in Philippines

Rescuers in the Philippines are searching for survivors from the capsizing of a ferry carrying more than 740 people after a typhoon lashed the region.

The head of the Philippines Red Cross, Richard Gordon, told local radio that the death toll from the typhoon stood at 155 people, according to Reuters.

Typhoon Fengshen, which had gusts of wind at 121mph, has killed at least 85 people in the central and southern Philippines, including 59 in Iloilo province, where floodwaters submerged whole communities.

Another 40 are missing, according to government officials, and thousands more have been displaced from their homes.

The local government feared the death toll from the typhoon could rise as tens of thousands of people remained marooned on the roofs of submerged houses.

"Iloilo is like an ocean. This is the worst disaster we have had in our history," Governor Neil Tupaz told local radio.

The typhoon lashed the central Philippines for about four hours yesterday, setting off landslides and floods, cutting power and blowing off roofs.

Today it shifted to the north-west and brought heavy rain to the capital, Manila, from dawn.

The MV Princess of Stars - with 626 passengers and 121 crew members on board - ran aground a few miles off central Sibuyan island Saturday, then capsized.

The vessel's owner, Sulpicio Lines, said it had lost contact with the ferry, which was en route to Cebu from Manila, at around 12.30pm (0430 GMT) on Saturday.

Villagers heard warning sirens from the 23,824-tonne ship before dawn on Sunday.

Four bodies have been found by villagers, and children's slippers and life jackets were washed ashore.

Lieutenant-General Pedro Inserto, military commander in Visayas, the central region of the Philippines, said he was told the captain sounded the abandon-ship signal around 5am on Sunday.

A rescue ship was fighting against high winds to search for survivors but had so far found none.

"They haven't seen anyone. They're scouring the area. They're studying the direction of the waves to determine where survivors may have drifted," coast guard spokesman Lt. Senior Grade Arman Balilo said.

Three survivors were found in Sibuyan's Mabini village but all the roads to the village were blocked by fallen trees and many homes had been washed away, according to local radio.

Coastguard chief Vice-Admiral Wilfredo Tamayo said the ferry was "dead in the water" after its engine failed at around noon on Saturday.

An initial attempt to reach the vessel on Saturday was abandoned, with efforts resuming today.

"A lot of efforts have been done to send off rescue boats, but we really can't get through the very rough weather," Tamayo said.

According to Reuters, dozens of relatives crowded into the offices of Sulpicio Lines in the central city of Cebu, looking for information.

"My father was one of the passengers. Right now there is no good news," said Lani Dakay. "My father is 59, I don't even know if he can swim."

Felino Farionin whose wife, son and four in-laws were on the ferry said: "I'm very worried, I need to know what happened to my family.''

More than 20,000 people are being offered shelter in evacuation centers in the center and south of the region.

In Manila, large parts of the city are without power and the airport is using generators as a power supply while passengers crowd the terminal with many flights canceled.