Images of people floating at sea falsely linked to deadly Philippine ferry sinking

The images were shared on Facebook on January 27, 2026.

"A painful tragedy. You can't help but be moved to tears by what's happening right now; it's so heartbreaking I wish all of them had life vests," reads part of its Tagalog-language caption.

"A vessel traveling to Jolo from Zamboanga City sank early this morning, January 26, 2026, in waters under the jurisdiction of Basilan. The ship was a roll-on/roll-off (RORO) ferry vessel, M/V Trisha Kerstin."

The MV Trisha Kerstin 3, a triple-decker passenger vessel, was sailing from Zamboanga City to Jolo Island when it sank on January 26, about five kilometres (three miles) east of Baluk-Baluk Island, part of the Basilan island chain off the Zamboanga Peninsula (archived link).

The coast guard said at least 18 people were killed and 10 remained missing after the ferry with more than 340 people onboard capsized.

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Screenshot of the false Facebook post captured on January 28, 2026, with a red X added by AFP

The pictures circulated in similar social media posts, drawing reactions from users who believed they showed the tragic ferry accident.

"Oh my God, these boats should always give out life jackets," one comment read.

Another said: "Gosh, this is so sad. So many people died."

The images, however, were taken a week earlier when a different vessel sank.

Tawi-Tawi incident

A reverse image search on Google found the same pictures in a January 24 Facebook post by user Datch Sarail, who described how the boat he was travelling on had sunk a few days earlier (archived link).

"January 19, 2026, was a blur of survival. A day I'll never forget, no matter how hard I try," reads part of his post.

According to reports by Philippine online news outlets Inquirer.net and Philstar, the boat sank in waters off the southern island province of Tawi-Tawi which is more than 200 kilometres (120 miles) south of Basilan, where the MV Trisha Kerstin 3 capsized.

The reports said the boat sank after it encountered strong waves, leaving its 12 passengers and crew floating at sea until they were rescued by the Philippine Coast Guard (archived here and here).

They were then sent to a hospital in Bongao town, where "all of them were declared safe and out of danger without any serious or life threatening injuries," the province's health officer was quoted in the Inquirer report as saying. 

Local officials told reporters that the seacraft M/L Sitti Nur "was so old" and had no life jackets available.

A review of Sarail's profile shows the circulating images were taken from a seven-minute-long video he posted on that day showing people clinging to a partially sunk vessel at sea (archived link). 

"Yes, I was the one who took this video during the incident last January 19, 2026 here in Tawi-Tawi," Sarail told AFP on January 27.

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Screenshot comparison of the image used in the false post (L) and a still form the video posted on Facebook on January 19

The images also differ from videos of the MV Trisha Kerstin 3 disaster, which occurred in the early hours of January 26.

According to the Philippine Coast Guard, the ferry issued its distress signal around 1:50 am, just over four hours after it departed from the port of Zamboanga City on the southwestern tip of Mindanao.

Video released by the coast guard shows survivors of the ferry disaster being plucked from the sea and receiving medical attention.

AFP has debunked other false claims stemming from misrepresented visuals of ferry disasters.