Indonesian rescuers set to resume search for survivors of ferry sinking
The rescuers called off the search on Thursday evening due to a "visibility problem", Nanang Sigit, the head of East Java rescue agency said, adding that 29 people had been rescued so far.
The search for the missing had been hampered by strong currents and winds.
Mr Sigit said the operation would resume on Friday morning, with more than 160 rescuers, including police and military personnel, deployed to conduct the search backed by four vessels and several helicopters.
"But right now we are focusing on the surface of the water first."
The national search and rescue agency said six people were confirmed dead.
The bodies of a three-year-old boy and his mother were recovered on Thursday afternoon.
The KMP Tunu Pratama Jaya sank almost half an hour after leaving East Java province's Banyuwangi port on its way to Bali late on Wednesday.
The boat was carrying 53 passengers and 12 crew members, as well as 22 vehicles.
Many of those rescued were unconscious after drifting in choppy waters for hours, Banyuwangi Police Chief Rama Samtama Putra said.
The passengers were all Indonesian, the transport ministry said.
One of the survivors, Eko Toniansyah, 25, who lost his father, told Reuters the ferry suddenly began sinking and tilting, causing panic among all the passengers, who scrambled for life vests.
Another survivor, Bejo Santoso, 52, said strong waves caused the ferry to sway about 30 minutes after it left port.
Dozens of people prepared to jump as the ferry began to sink, Mr Santoso said.
Ferries are a common mode of transport in Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 17,000 islands, and accidents are common as lax safety standards often allow vessels to be overloaded without adequate life-saving equipment.
A small ferry capsized near Indonesia's Sulawesi island in 2023, killing at least 15 people.
AP/Reuters
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Sydney Morning Herald
15 hours ago
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‘I tied his body to my thigh': Extraordinary stories of death and survival in Bali ferry disaster
It was a pleasant coincidence for Bejo Santoso that in his maxi taxi to the ferry terminal in Indonesia's Banyuwangi regency there were two people hailing from his village. It was a mother and a three-year-old boy, on their way to Bali's Gilimanuk port and continuing on in the taxi to Denpasar, where the woman's husband was waiting for them. Bejo and the woman chatted. She was going home to her immediate family. He was leaving his family to go back to his Bali construction job. At the ferry, he helped the boy up the stairs, then watched as mother and child made their way to the centre of the cabin, for it was too windy on the deck. Bejo went outside nonetheless and sat with the smokers on the side. It was about 10.50pm Bali time (12.50am AEST) on Wednesday night. Not half an hour into the five kilometre ride, 22-year-old passenger Nanda Sinta noticed that the boat was behaving peculiarly. Travelling the East Java-Bali route about ten times a year, she knew the motions. Normally in big waves, the ferry rocks side to side. Now, it seemed stuck on a permanent lean. 'Then, people in the back started screaming because the boat was taking water,' she said. 'It all happened so quickly.' On the side decks with the smokers, Bejo realised the boat was sinking. As it started to go down and he leapt with about 30 others into the sea, he caught a glimpse of the mother and boy still in the cabin. Nanda jumped too. 'I couldn't swim, but my two friends could. When the ferry started sinking, I just followed along when they jumped,' she says. 'Staying would mean risking sinking with the boat.'
The Advertiser
a day ago
- The Advertiser
Indonesia resumes search for missing ferry passengers
Indonesian rescuers are battling strong currents as they resume the search for 30 people still missing at sea about 35 hours after a ferry sank killing at least six people. The ferry named KMP Tunu Pratama Jaya was carrying 65 people, all Indonesians, when it sank about 30 minutes after setting sail from East Java bound for the holiday island of Bali on Wednesday night, said search and rescue agency official Ribut Eko Suyatno. Twenty-nine survivors were rescued on Thursday before the search was called off due to poor visibility. Dayu Made Silawati, 55, said her husband, Dewa Gede Adyana Putra Usia, was travelling on the ferry to pick up supplies in Bali for his job as a truck driver. Waiting for news at a rescue centre in Bali, she said the last time she spoke to him was on Wednesday night. "'I just got on the ship,'" she recalled him saying. "I said to him, 'Be careful, dear.'" At 4am on Thursday, Silawati said she called him again, and again. There was no answer. Rescue operations resumed on Friday in the waters of Bali Strait involving ships, helicopters, and hundreds of rescuers, Eko said. Strong currents and rain are expected. Transportation safety investigators would probe the cause of the sinking when the search is over, officials said. The ferry was not overloaded when it went down, officials said on Thursday. Ferries are a common mode of transportation in Indonesia, a nation of over 17,000 islands, and lax safety standards allow vessels to be overcrowded with inadequate life-saving equipment. Indonesian rescuers are battling strong currents as they resume the search for 30 people still missing at sea about 35 hours after a ferry sank killing at least six people. The ferry named KMP Tunu Pratama Jaya was carrying 65 people, all Indonesians, when it sank about 30 minutes after setting sail from East Java bound for the holiday island of Bali on Wednesday night, said search and rescue agency official Ribut Eko Suyatno. Twenty-nine survivors were rescued on Thursday before the search was called off due to poor visibility. Dayu Made Silawati, 55, said her husband, Dewa Gede Adyana Putra Usia, was travelling on the ferry to pick up supplies in Bali for his job as a truck driver. Waiting for news at a rescue centre in Bali, she said the last time she spoke to him was on Wednesday night. "'I just got on the ship,'" she recalled him saying. "I said to him, 'Be careful, dear.'" At 4am on Thursday, Silawati said she called him again, and again. There was no answer. Rescue operations resumed on Friday in the waters of Bali Strait involving ships, helicopters, and hundreds of rescuers, Eko said. Strong currents and rain are expected. Transportation safety investigators would probe the cause of the sinking when the search is over, officials said. The ferry was not overloaded when it went down, officials said on Thursday. Ferries are a common mode of transportation in Indonesia, a nation of over 17,000 islands, and lax safety standards allow vessels to be overcrowded with inadequate life-saving equipment. Indonesian rescuers are battling strong currents as they resume the search for 30 people still missing at sea about 35 hours after a ferry sank killing at least six people. The ferry named KMP Tunu Pratama Jaya was carrying 65 people, all Indonesians, when it sank about 30 minutes after setting sail from East Java bound for the holiday island of Bali on Wednesday night, said search and rescue agency official Ribut Eko Suyatno. Twenty-nine survivors were rescued on Thursday before the search was called off due to poor visibility. Dayu Made Silawati, 55, said her husband, Dewa Gede Adyana Putra Usia, was travelling on the ferry to pick up supplies in Bali for his job as a truck driver. Waiting for news at a rescue centre in Bali, she said the last time she spoke to him was on Wednesday night. "'I just got on the ship,'" she recalled him saying. "I said to him, 'Be careful, dear.'" At 4am on Thursday, Silawati said she called him again, and again. There was no answer. Rescue operations resumed on Friday in the waters of Bali Strait involving ships, helicopters, and hundreds of rescuers, Eko said. Strong currents and rain are expected. Transportation safety investigators would probe the cause of the sinking when the search is over, officials said. The ferry was not overloaded when it went down, officials said on Thursday. Ferries are a common mode of transportation in Indonesia, a nation of over 17,000 islands, and lax safety standards allow vessels to be overcrowded with inadequate life-saving equipment. Indonesian rescuers are battling strong currents as they resume the search for 30 people still missing at sea about 35 hours after a ferry sank killing at least six people. The ferry named KMP Tunu Pratama Jaya was carrying 65 people, all Indonesians, when it sank about 30 minutes after setting sail from East Java bound for the holiday island of Bali on Wednesday night, said search and rescue agency official Ribut Eko Suyatno. Twenty-nine survivors were rescued on Thursday before the search was called off due to poor visibility. Dayu Made Silawati, 55, said her husband, Dewa Gede Adyana Putra Usia, was travelling on the ferry to pick up supplies in Bali for his job as a truck driver. Waiting for news at a rescue centre in Bali, she said the last time she spoke to him was on Wednesday night. "'I just got on the ship,'" she recalled him saying. "I said to him, 'Be careful, dear.'" At 4am on Thursday, Silawati said she called him again, and again. There was no answer. Rescue operations resumed on Friday in the waters of Bali Strait involving ships, helicopters, and hundreds of rescuers, Eko said. Strong currents and rain are expected. Transportation safety investigators would probe the cause of the sinking when the search is over, officials said. The ferry was not overloaded when it went down, officials said on Thursday. Ferries are a common mode of transportation in Indonesia, a nation of over 17,000 islands, and lax safety standards allow vessels to be overcrowded with inadequate life-saving equipment.
ABC News
2 days ago
- ABC News
Indonesian rescuers set to resume search for survivors of ferry sinking
Indonesian rescuers have temporarily halted a search for 29 people still missing after a ferry carrying 65 people sank near Bali. The rescuers called off the search on Thursday evening due to a "visibility problem", Nanang Sigit, the head of East Java rescue agency said, adding that 29 people had been rescued so far. The search for the missing had been hampered by strong currents and winds. Mr Sigit said the operation would resume on Friday morning, with more than 160 rescuers, including police and military personnel, deployed to conduct the search backed by four vessels and several helicopters. "But right now we are focusing on the surface of the water first." The national search and rescue agency said six people were confirmed dead. The bodies of a three-year-old boy and his mother were recovered on Thursday afternoon. The KMP Tunu Pratama Jaya sank almost half an hour after leaving East Java province's Banyuwangi port on its way to Bali late on Wednesday. The boat was carrying 53 passengers and 12 crew members, as well as 22 vehicles. Many of those rescued were unconscious after drifting in choppy waters for hours, Banyuwangi Police Chief Rama Samtama Putra said. The passengers were all Indonesian, the transport ministry said. One of the survivors, Eko Toniansyah, 25, who lost his father, told Reuters the ferry suddenly began sinking and tilting, causing panic among all the passengers, who scrambled for life vests. Another survivor, Bejo Santoso, 52, said strong waves caused the ferry to sway about 30 minutes after it left port. Dozens of people prepared to jump as the ferry began to sink, Mr Santoso said. Ferries are a common mode of transport in Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 17,000 islands, and accidents are common as lax safety standards often allow vessels to be overloaded without adequate life-saving equipment. A small ferry capsized near Indonesia's Sulawesi island in 2023, killing at least 15 people. AP/Reuters
