FERRY INFERNO: 76 Dead, More Missing After Philippines Ship Fire...

The MV June Aster caught fire Wednesday while carrying 134 people near Coron, a major tourist destination in the Philippines, with recovery efforts hampered by toxic fumes that kept rescuers from boarding until Friday. Coast Guard officials have now recovered 30 bodies from the wreckage, raising the confirmed death toll to 35, while more than 50 passengers remain missing—many of them believed to be in the ferry's sleeping quarters where the blaze appears to have trapped people during the overnight journey from Manila. Preliminary survivor accounts suggest the fire began in the cargo hold, and investigators are examining whether inadequate emergency procedures and life vest availability contributed to the high casualties.