MANILA, Philippines — Malacañang said Friday that an investigation is already underway into the sinking of an interisland ferry in waters off Quezon Province which killed at least five people as search operations continue. Harry Roque, a spokesperson for President Rodrigo Duterte's office, said, "We are saddened by the unfortunate incident involving Mercraft 3, which capsized between Dinahican, Quezon and Polilio Island." We are not discounting it," he said on Thursday, adding that waves in the waters off Quezon are normally high at this time of the year. Poe pushes creation of transportation safety board anewSen. Grace Poe, chair of the Senate panel on public services, meanwhile pushed for the creation of the National Transportation Safety Board to ensure better safety standards to prevent disasters from happening. Past sea disasters have also been blamed on the weather as the country is regularly visited by storms.

Source: Philippine Star December 22, 2017 08:03 UTC