A passenger ferry caught fire overnight in the southern Philippines, killing at least 10 people, authorities said Thursday.
The ship was at sea near an island in the southern province of Basilan when the fire broke out on Wednesday night, the Philippine Coast Guard said. The cause of the fire was not immediately clear, and the coast guard said an investigation was underway.
Maritime accidents are common in the Philippines, an archipelago of more than 7,100 islands where traveling by sea is the cheapest mode of transportation.
Last year, seven people died after a passenger ferry carrying 124 passengers caught fire shortly after leaving Polillo Island, east of the Philippine capital, Manila. Over a hundred more people were rescued.
This is a developing story.
