One dead, 102 rescued as Indonesian ferry carrying 243 runs into severe weather

At least one person has died and 102 others have been rescued after a passenger ferry travelling between Indonesia’s Java and Borneo islands ran into severe weather in the Java Sea, with search operations continuing for around 140 people still unaccounted for.

The Virgo Transport 8 was carrying 243 passengers and crew when it lost contact with its shipping company early on Sunday while travelling from Surabaya in East Java to Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan.

Local search and rescue chief I Putu Sudayana said 103 people had been evacuated, including the passenger who died.

Captain reported vessel was tilting before contact was lost

The ferry’s last known position was in the Java Sea, around 150 kilometres from Banjarmasin, its intended destination.

According to Sudayana, the captain had reported that the vessel was “tilting” before communications were lost. Rescue officials were then faced with difficult conditions as they attempted to reach the stricken ferry.

Waves in the area were reaching up to 2.5 metres, creating significant risks for rescue vessels. Sudayana said even the 40-metre-long Basarnas vessel was operating in extremely dangerous conditions.

The vessel had departed Surabaya on Saturday. Indonesian authorities received the report that it had lost contact at around 4.10am local time on Sunday, after the ship was reported to have encountered bad weather.

Multiple vessels involved in rescue operation

A joint search and rescue operation has been mounted to locate those still missing.

Three nearby commercial vessels were involved in evacuating people from the stricken ferry. According to Indonesian authorities, the TB Mauhaw IX rescued 16 people, including one person who later died, while the TB TCP rescued 38 people and the MV Haida rescued 49, all of whom were reported to be alive.

Other vessels involved in the continuing operation include the KN SAR Laksmana, KRI Nala and KM Kunyit, while a Basarnas helicopter has also been deployed for aerial searches.

The 16 people evacuated by TB Mauhaw IX were due to be taken to Tuban, while those rescued by the TB TCP and MV Haida were being transported towards Trisakti Port in Banjarmasin.

The manifest listed 243 people aboard the vessel, including 213 passengers and 30 crew members, according to a later report.

Indonesia has a history of deadly maritime accidents

The incident has once again highlighted the dangers faced by passengers travelling by sea in Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 17,000 islands where ferry and boat services are an essential part of everyday transport and tourism.

Marine accidents are relatively frequent, with unpredictable weather and concerns over safety standards often cited among the factors contributing to such disasters.

The latest incident follows several other maritime accidents in the country.

On Monday, a speedboat carrying eight people, including five journalists working for local and international news organisations, went missing near Mount Anak Krakatau in Banten province. A search for those aboard was under way. The journalists had travelled to cover an eruption at the volcano that disrupted operations at Jakarta’s main airport and several other airports.

Last month, a ferry travelling from Bali to Lombok caught fire in the Lombok Strait. One person died and five others were reported missing, while 211 people were rescued after the vessel encountered trouble in the early hours of August 12.

Earlier in July, another ferry carrying more than 70 people sank near Selayar, a small island south of Sulawesi.

The search for those missing from the Virgo Transport 8 was continuing amid challenging weather conditions on Sunday.