Islamabad: Hundreds of Indonesian rescuers, including coastguard and navy personnel, are searching for 129 people missing after a passenger ship capsized in the Java Sea, with six deaths confirmed, officials said on Monday.
The Virgo Transport 8 was carrying 243 people when it went missing in bad weather early on Sunday while travelling from Surabaya in East Java to Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan. Authorities have rescued 108 people from the vessel, according to the national rescue agency.
Rescue operations have been hampered by high waves and strong winds. Mohammad Syafii, head of the national rescue agency, said at least 622 personnel, 17 ships, five helicopters and aircraft had been deployed to locate the missing passengers.
Some rescue vessels have reached the area, but strong winds and rough seas have made it difficult for rescuers to approach and board the capsized ship. Syafii said personnel trained in underwater rescue could not yet be deployed because of the conditions.
"While waiting for the weather conditions to improve, we are identifying more personnel with special skills," he said, adding that the death toll remained at six.
Footage released by the rescue agency showed the large red-and-black vessel capsized and partly submerged in the sea, with two smaller boats carrying people nearby.
The ship is located about 80 nautical miles, or nearly 150 kilometres, from the command centre at Trisakti Port in Banjarmasin, according to rescue agency official Arianto Ardi. He said strong winds were making it difficult for vessels to dock near the site.
Syafii said waves reached up to three metres when the incident occurred. The journey from Trisakti Port to the location takes about five hours in good weather but can take up to nine hours in rough conditions.
Another rescue official, Edy Prakoso, said on Sunday that the ship had leaned heavily to one side after strong waves struck its starboard side. Transport Minister Dudy Purwagandhi said the vessel had a capacity of 500 passengers and was therefore not overloaded.
Indonesia relies heavily on ferry services to connect its roughly 17,000 islands, as sea travel is generally cheaper and more accessible than flying. However, the country has recorded several ferry accidents.
Last month, two separate ferries carrying hundreds of passengers caught fire at sea. Five people died when a ferry caught fire off Madura island, while another person died in a fire on a ferry travelling from Bali.
