A total of 62 people are missing at sea and this number may grow, said Police Commander Chris Kelley, this morning, as there is great difficulty in trying to reconcile passenger figures after the sinking of the MV Princess Ashika in Ha'apai waters late on August 5.

"We believe a more accurate manifest was on board and was lost so there could have been more persons on board who have not been identified," he said, describing the sinking as, "a terrible tragedy and major disaster in Tonga ... that strikes right at the heart of a nation of sea-faring people".

In his first press conference, the Commander stated of today, the Tonga Police and the Shipping Company believed that 117 persons were on board when the vessel left Tongatapu on Wednesday evening, August 5. The final manifest, in possession of a crew member, was lost with the vessel.

He said of the 62 people who are unaccounted were

4 male crews and 58 passengers identified as:

19 male passengers;

21 female passengers;

7 children, including babies;

11 people have not been identified as to whether they are males or females.

The Commander said that 62 people who are unaccounted for was based on the revised ship's manifest.

"Our focus is still on rescuing people. Not all the liferafts are accounted for and there was ample safety equipment on board,. . . but one liferaft can be seen snagged underwater at location of the sinking," he said.

"The Tonga Police are currently coodinating a major maritime search and rescue operation in the Ha'apai group of islands.

"Over 77% of the search pattern area had been completed by the Orion at nightfall on August 6," he said.

"But as time goes by there less and less chance of more survivors being picked up."

Survivors

There are 53 known survivors, all males;, and two confirmed dead, one European male and one Polynesian female, bringing the number accounted for to 55.

There are 58 passengers and four crew unaccounted for, including a Japanese crew member.

He said of the 25 survivors and two dead, only 12 were listed on the manifest and 15 were not.

Of the two dead, the unidentified female body was found by a fishing boat and brought to Nuku'alofa where is now kept at Vaiola Hospital morgue. The body of the European male, believed to be that of a Britishman who was living in New Zealand, is still being kept at Niu'ui Hospital morgue and will be brought down to the capital today. Commander Kelly said the next of kin had not been notified, and efforts were being made to establish identity of both the deceased.

The commander said they would not release an official list of the survivors until they had properly determined the names. "there are changing patterns of identity.

"The operation will continue until we have accounted for and identified all on board," he said.

The 24 hour telephone hotlines for families of the passengers and crew are:

Police hotlines

+676 28681

+676 27154

+676 24921

National Emergency Centre hotlines:

+676 28004

+676 28005

People who know their family members were passengers, or who put people on the MV Ashika should contact these numbers.