MANILA, Philippines - The specter of more casualties from the sinking of the motor banca MV Dexter Kathleen off Masbate looms as authorities voiced fears Tuesday night the vessel may have been "overloaded."

Provincial police director Sr. Supt. Reuben Sindac admitted the situation in the province is such that the loading of passengers is done informally.

"Yes, I will not discount the possibility the numbers could be bigger," he said of the number of casualties in an interview on Q-11 television's News on Q newscast.

When asked about the possibility that there are more passengers than the 119 in the ship's manifest, he said, "Yes, there is a tendency because of the informality of the system."

As of 9:30 p.m., he said the 39 dead so far included four males and 35 females.

Sindac said survivors were being treated at two hospitals in Dimasalang town, and those who have no injuries returned to their respective families.

When asked if charges will be filed against the owner of the ship, he said it is up to the Coast Guard.

"We will take that into strong consideration but I am aware it is the domain of the Coast Guard," he said.

Earlier, he said that as per the manifest of the vessel, at least four people remained unaccounted for. At least 39 were reported dead and 76 rescued, he said.

Masbate administrator Herminio Valdemoro earlier cited initial reports reaching him indicating more than 100 passengers were aboard the MV Dexter Kathleen.

The weather suddenly turned violent, there was a whirlwind. It was possible the ship capsized," Valdemoro said in an interview on dzBB.

Sindac said the incident occurred between 1 to 2 p.m. as the craft was heading from Dimasalang in Masbate to Bulan in Sorsogon.

He cited initial reports indicating the fatalities included three women and one infant. He also said there were at least 46 survivors.

Also, he said there were life jackets aboard the ship but the waves were too sudden. -

I think it isn't good to travel these days especially that the weather changes often. I think in this situation it is not only the owner of the ship to be blame but also the people because I think there's a limited number of people that suppose to be on that ship but because we just had our holiday and many people went to their hometown thats why people were also trying their best to get back to their work so even if the ship was already full but I guess some passengers insist to ride the ship althought they know that it's a very dangerous situation especially with the sudden changes of weather. And they should have put on the life jacket from the moment they are on board. On the other hand, the ship owner should not allow those passengers who wanted to join the trip. They should follow the rules that they have in the ship to avoid this incidents. They should also have some preventive measures to avoid this when a strong wind is coming.