NewzAt least five people were killed and 41 remained missing after the passenger ferry KMP Mutiara Sentosa II off Indonesia's Madura Island on Sunday, according to the National Search and Rescue Agency. SURABAYA, Indonesia (AP) — An Indonesian ferry carrying 271 people caught fire in waters off the main island of Java on Sunday, leaving at least five people dead and dozens missing as rescuers and passing vessels evacuated hundreds from the burning ship, officials said.The Mutiara Sentosa 2 ferry was traveling from Indonesia's second-largest city of Surabaya in East Java to the city of Makassar in South Sulawesi, with 232 passengers, 39 crew members and 181 vehicles, mostly trucks, and an excavator, when the fire broke out between 6 a.m. in waters off Sumenep regency, according to Indonesia’s National Search and Rescue Agency, or Basarnas.The ferry operator, PT Atosim Lampung Pelayaran, reported the incident to the Surabaya search and rescue office about an hour later, Basarnas said in a statement.
It said the company received information from the ferry's captain that the vessel was on fire near the northern tip of Madura island, but contact was later lost.By 9:45 a.m., authorities determined the ferry was about 19 nautical miles north of Buruan Sapudi island after communicating with the nearby cargo vessel Meratus Project 3, which was unable to approach the burning vessel closely because it was carrying a flammable load.Footage released by the National Search and Rescue Agency showed thick black smoke billowing from one side of the ferry and spreading across much of the ship while videos circulating on social media and messaging groups showed terrified passengers, mostly wearing life jackets, could be seen clustered on the deck and upper sections of the vessel awaiting rescue, some jumping into the sea as orange flames and black smoke billowed from the burning vessel.The ferry was reported to be nearly engulfed by flames, with passengers gathered on the bridge and bow. A tugboat and another passing vessel moved in and began evacuating passengers shortly before 10 a.m., the statement said.By Sunday evening, several nearby vessels managed to rescue 227 passengers and crew and recovered five bodies. At least 39 people remained unaccounted for.The cause of the fire was not immediately known and remained under investigation.Ahmad Abdul Karim, one of the survivors, said the fire appeared to have started from a truck on the lower vehicle deck.“Someone came up from the lower deck and told us there was a fire.
When we went down to check, two vehicles wer… An Indonesian ferry caught fire at sea on Sunday, killing five people and leaving another 41 missing after some jumped overboard, search and rescue officials said. A total of 225 people on the vessel were rescued, said the regional Surabaya Search and Rescue Agency, which provided the latest figures in an afternoon update.
Some passengers jumped into the sea and were picked up by a nearby ship, according to Basarnas, Indonesia's National Search and Rescue Agency. Four other vessels were on standby near the ferry but could not approach because of the risk posed by flammable material on the ferry, it said. The captain had called the ferry company to report the fire as the vessel sailed from Surabaya in East Java to Makassar in South Sulawesi, Basarnas said.
The captain had not been in contact since then, it said. A larger rescue operation was heading to the site from Surabaya, a six-hour journey from the site of the disaster, Basarnas said. "Based on preliminary reports from the field, passengers are waiting to be evacuated by the vessels in the vicinity of the incident site," said Muhammad Masyhud, a senior official at the Ministry of Transportation.
"The safety of passengers and crew is our top priority. We are continuously coordinating with all relevant parties to ensure that the evacuation process can proceed quickly, safely, and effectively," he said in a statement. Marine accidents are a regular occurrence in Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 17,000 islands, partly due to lax safety standards and unpredictable weather.
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