KUPANG, Feb 1: Rescuers on Wednesday found 113 survivors, some clinging to planks of wood and water containers, after a ferry capsized in heavy seas in eastern Indonesia, a rescue official said.
One person was found dead after the vessel sank on Tuesday evening while the survivors were transported to Kupang, the capital of the western half of Timor island.
“So far we have found 113 people, plus one dead,” he said, revising down by one his earlier tally of survivors.
“We have asked people to report any missing relatives who were on the journey,” he said, adding that they had so far only received a call from a woman with seven relatives on the voyage. Only one was found among the victims.
The ferry was travelling between Kupang, in Indonesia’s East Nusa Tenggara Province, to the nearby island of Rote when it capsized.
The manifest showed the vessel was carrying 82 passengers and a crew of 20, another official said earlier. There was no immediate explanation for the higher number of survivors.
Susilo said the survivors were weak, with some in a critical condition.
The search for the victims involved three navy warships and a small plane, he said.
The navy officer said many of the survivors were clinging to planks of wood and plastic water containers when they were plucked from the sea, while others were wearing life jackets.
An official from the provincial Search and Rescue Agency said the boat had hit rough seas while heading for Rote and tried to turn back to Kupang, but its engine died. Large waves then capsized it.
The boat had been properly equipped for the journey, which normally takes about five hours, another official from Kupang’s port administration said.
“The boat had the all necessary certificates, radio communications and also the required safety jackets and life rafts,” said the official, who gave his name as Dana.
Indonesia, the world’s largest archipelago nation, relies heavily on marine transportation, but weak enforcement of safety standards and regular overcrowding have led to frequent deadly accidents.
Kupang is almost 2,000 kilometres east of the capital Jakarta.
The state news agency Antara, meanwhile, reported Wednesday that search and rescue teams in Central Sulawesi province had halted a search for victims of another boat mishap a week ago.
The accident killed one person and left 11 people missing, it said. —AFP
