A ferry capsized due to adverse weather conditions in the Java Sea of Indonesia on Sunday, resulting in approximately 130 passengers and crew members being unaccounted for, according to rescue teams. The incident occurred as the ferry, carrying over 240 individuals, was en route from Surabaya in East Java to Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan province on Borneo Island.
The captain of the vessel had alerted authorities about rough seas with waves reaching up to three meters and the ship listing before sending out a distress signal, as reported by I Putu Sudayana, the head of the Banjarmasin Search and Rescue Office. Following the distress call, it was later confirmed that the ferry had overturned.
Rescue operations commenced after the Banjarmasin rescue agency received a report two hours post losing contact with the Virgo Transport 8 around 2 a.m. on Sunday. Multiple teams, backed by eight vessels including four navy ships and two helicopters, were mobilized to search for survivors.
As per initial details, the ferry was last located in the Java Sea, roughly 148 kilometers away from Banjarmasin. Despite the vessel’s manifest indicating 243 individuals on board, including 213 passengers, 30 crew members, and 89 vehicles, discrepancies in passenger numbers are common in Indonesia. By Sunday afternoon, rescue efforts led by Sudayana had successfully saved 107 individuals and retrieved six bodies.
The 119-meter Virgo Transport 8 ferry, constructed in Japan in 1987, was observed floating upside down without sinking during aerial reconnaissance, as stated by Transport Minister Dudy Purwagandhi. Search operations were concentrated around the overturned ferry to locate any remaining survivors.
At Banjarmasin’s Trisakti port, distressed relatives gathered at a command center anxiously awaiting updates on their loved ones believed to be on board the ferry. Many families scrutinized passenger lists and rescue records while authorities continued the search and rescue mission.
Indonesia, with its vast archipelago of over 17,000 islands, heavily relies on ferries for transportation, leading to frequent accidents attributed to lax safety regulations. Recent maritime disasters in the region include a ferry fire near Bali where 211 individuals were rescued, and an incident involving the Mutiara Sentosa 2 ferry off Java, resulting in fatalities. The tragic event on Sunday follows a ferry fire in the Philippines that claimed numerous lives a few days earlier.
