On Sunday, an Indonesian ferry with 243 people on board capsized during a storm in the Java Sea. Currently, half of the passengers are reported missing, prompting ongoing search efforts for at least 129 individuals, according to the Associated Press.
At least 108 survivors have been rescued, and the bodies of six passengers have been recovered as rescue teams expand their operations around the last known location of the vessel.
The ferry was en route from Surabaya, located in eastern Java, to Banjarmasin on the island of Borneo. Prior to the accident, the ship’s captain had reported rough sea conditions, with waves reaching up to three meters, and sent an emergency call indicating that the vessel was leaning. Authorities later received reports confirming the ferry had overturned.
Indonesian Authorities Search for Remaining Passengers
The rescue agency in Banjarmasin received a distress signal two hours after contact was lost with the “Virgo Transport 8” ferry, around 2:00 AM on Sunday.
A rescue vessel headed toward the last known position of the ferry, supported by 12 additional boats, including four military ships and two helicopters.
According to the official manifest of the “Virgo Transport 8”, the ferry carried 243 individuals: 213 passengers and 30 crew members. However, it is common in Indonesia for actual passenger numbers to differ from those recorded on the ship’s manifest. The ferry also transported 89 vehicles.
Constructed in Japan in 1987 and operating there until last year, the 119-meter-long ferry was sold to PT Virgo Karya Shipping, its current Indonesian operator.
Dudy Purwagandhi, Indonesia’s transportation minister, stated that aerial search operations revealed the ferry was floating upside down and had not sunk. Rescue efforts are focused around the capsized vessel.
Video footage released on Sunday by Indonesia’s National Search and Rescue Agency showed the capsized ferry floating in turbulent waters during a search operation involving helicopters.
Families of Passengers Await News
Local television stations aired images of exhausted survivors disembarking from a rescue vessel at a port in Banjarmasin, while injured victims were transported on stretchers to nearby hospitals.
Hundreds of relatives gathered at a command center in Trisakti port, Banjarmasin, anxiously awaiting news about their family members believed to be on board the ferry. Many were checking passenger lists and survivor reports as authorities continued their search for survivors.
“I was shocked to see my uncle’s name on the passenger list,” one woman told reporters from AO. “But I felt relief when officials told me he had been rescued,” she recounted.
Capsizing of ‘Virgo Transport 8’ Follows Other Maritime Disasters in Indonesia
Indonesia, an archipelago of over 17,000 islands, frequently experiences maritime accidents, with ferries being a common mode of transportation. Poor enforcement of safety regulations is often cited as a contributing factor.
Last month, at least 211 people were rescued from an Indonesian ferry that caught fire in rough seas near the tourist island of Bali, with one person confirmed dead and four others missing. This incident occurred less than two weeks after another ferry, the “Mutiara Sentosa 2,” caught fire off the main island of Java, resulting in at least five fatalities.
The accident on Sunday took place just four days after a fire destroyed a passenger ferry in the Philippines, leading to at least 76 deaths, with around ten other individuals reported missing.
