Ferry Capsizes in Indonesia’s Java Sea as Search Continues
A ferry carrying more than 240 people overturned in Indonesia’s Java Sea during rough weather on Sunday, prompting a large-scale search and rescue operation. By Sunday afternoon, authorities said 107 passengers and crew members had been rescued, while six bodies had been recovered. About 130 people remained unaccounted for.
The Virgo Transport 8, a 119-metre ferry built in Japan in 1987, was travelling from Surabaya in East Java to Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan province. Its manifest listed 243 people, including 213 passengers and 30 crew members, as well as 89 vehicles. Officials cautioned that passenger totals on Indonesian ferries do not always match manifests.
Before contact was lost at about 2 a.m., the captain reported waves reaching three metres and said the vessel was listing. A distress call followed. Authorities received the incident report roughly two hours later. Aerial observations subsequently showed the ferry floating upside down rather than sunk.
Rescue teams focused on the ship’s last known location, approximately 148 kilometres from Banjarmasin. Eight vessels, including four navy ships, two helicopters, nearby tugboats, and passing ships supported the operation.
At Trisakti port in Banjarmasin, hundreds of relatives gathered at a command centre to review passenger lists and await updates. One woman, identified as Bunga, said she was relieved after learning that her uncle had been rescued.
Ferries are an essential form of transportation across Indonesia’s more than 17,000 islands, but maritime accidents occur regularly. Safety enforcement has frequently been cited as a concern. The overturned ferry followed several recent regional incidents, including fires aboard passenger vessels near Bali, Java, and in the Philippines.
Indonesia’s Transport Minister Dudy Purwagandhi said rescuers were concentrating their efforts around the overturned hull. Global Affairs Canada said it had received no reports of Canadians affected.