At least 35 people died after a ferry capsized
shortly after leaving the port of Ormoc in the Philippines on Thursday,
officials said. There were 173 passengers aboard the MV Kim Nirvana when it went down in bad weather just 650 feet from the port, a spokeswoman for the Philippine coast guard told NBC News. "It capsized immediately," she said.
At least 35 people were confirmed dead in the incident, the Philippine Red Cross said on Twitter. The coast guard said 118 people had been rescued but more than a dozen remained missing at 4:30 a.m. ET.
It was unclear how many crew were also on the vessel, according to the coast guard spokeswoman.
The ship went down at around 12:50 p.m. local (12:50 a.m. ET). Just over three hours later, the coast guard said part of the ship's hull was still visible above the water.
"Rubber boats" had been deployed as part of the rescue effort, the spokeswoman said.
Ormoc is the second-largest city on the island of Leyte and around 350 miles southeast of Manila. The ship was bound for Pilar island, around 14 miles away, the coast guard said.
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