Indonesian search crews worked through Monday to find 129 people still missing after a ferry overturned in the Java Sea on Sunday, an accident that has already killed at least six passengers.
The vessel, Virgo Transport 8, was sailing from Surabaya in East Java province to Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan province on Borneo Island. It was carrying more than 240 people when its captain sent a distress call reporting the ship was listing in rough seas, with waves reaching up to 10 feet.
Authorities lost contact with the ferry at about 2 a.m. Sunday. Roughly two hours later, they received word that the vessel had capsized in the Masalembo waters of the Java Sea, about 92 miles from Banjarmasin.
Footage released by Indonesia’s National Search and Rescue Agency showed the overturned hull floating in choppy water as a helicopter conducted searches overhead.
By Monday, the agency had deployed 17 ships and aircraft along with about 655 personnel drawn from the military, police and other agencies, according to agency chief Mohammad Syafii. Specialized underwater teams and navy-operated thermal drones were also brought in to speed up the search and recovery effort.
“We remain hopeful of finding more survivors,” Syafii said at a video briefing.
On Sunday, search teams working with nearby tugboats and other passing vessels rescued 108 people and recovered six bodies.
According to the ship’s manifest, it was carrying 243 people, including 213 passengers and 30 crew, along with 89 vehicles. Indonesian officials noted that passenger counts commonly differ from manifest figures. The ferry itself was 390 feet long and had been built in Japan in 1987.
Authorities have not yet determined what caused the capsizing.
Survivors Describe Chaos and No Warning
Ahmad Saudi, a bus driver traveling with a vehicle he was transporting, said the ferry appeared overcrowded, with passengers sleeping in hallways and common areas because the cabins were full. He said the ship listed suddenly and without warning, setting off panic as rough seas pounded the vessel.
Passengers first tried to hold their ground before scrambling toward the higher side of the ferry as it tilted further, Saudi said. He speculated that trucks loaded on one side may have thrown off the ship’s balance.
“The women staying in the economy-class cabins likely didn’t survive because the ferry listed so quickly,” Saudi said. “There were no alarms or announcements warning passengers about what was happening, many people in the cabins may not have had enough time to get out.”
Another survivor, who goes by the single name Faisal, said he and 14 other passengers clung to a portion of the capsized hull that stayed above the waterline.
“After the ship listed, people panicked and rushed to the upper deck, but eventually the ferry rolled over completely,” he said. “Fourteen of us were left stranded there.”
Faisal said the stranded group repeatedly recited the Islamic call to prayer, the adhan, as they fought exhaustion and rough seas while waiting to be rescued. He was eventually swept by a wave toward a lifeboat, which he credited with saving his life.
Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 17,000 islands, relies heavily on ferries for travel between islands, and accidents occur with some regularity, in part because of weak enforcement of safety standards.
