MAKASSAR: Rescuers recovered 40 more bodies on Thursday from waters in central Indonesia, raising the confirmed death toll from the weekend sinking of a passenger boat to 63. Fifteen people are still missing.

The Marina Baru 2B, carrying 118 passengers and crewmen, sank in the Gulf of Bone on Saturday while on its way from Kolaka in Southeast Sulawesi province to Siwa town in South Sulawesi province.

The fiberglass ferry reportedly was overwhelmed by waves more than 3 meters (10 feet) high during stormy weather.

The head of the local disaster mitigation agency, Alamsyah, revised the number of survivors to 40, saying one person had been counted twice.

Indonesian search and rescue team members carry a dead body to shore in Kolaka. —AFP
Indonesian search and rescue team members carry a dead body to shore in Kolaka. —AFP

Most of the survivors were pulled out Sunday while the last one was the boat's captain, who was found Monday snagged on a fishing platform, said Alamsyah, who uses a single name.

Operational chief of South Sulawesi's Search and Rescue Agency Deden Ridwansyah said all but one of the bodies recovered Thursday were found intact.

Ridwansyah said the search for the remaining 15 missing would be carried out until Saturday.

Boats are a popular form of transportation in Indonesia's 17,000 islands, but overcrowding and poor safety enforcement make accidents common.

Indonesian rescuers recover the dead body of a baby during an operation in the Sulawesi sea, near Kolaka. —AFP
Indonesian rescuers recover the dead body of a baby during an operation in the Sulawesi sea, near Kolaka. —AFP

Opinion

Editorial

After the budget
Updated 26 Jun, 2026

After the budget

Though not a bad document per se, the budget for FY27 is a familiar one, and familiarity in our economic history is rarely cause for comfort.
Missing the mark
26 Jun, 2026

Missing the mark

PAKISTAN’S commitment to the SDGs is routinely reaffirmed, but the gap between promises and progress continues to...
Up in smoke
26 Jun, 2026

Up in smoke

PAKISTAN is watching an epidemic unfold as the menace of narcotic abuse hits every fourth household in Karachi ...
Reflection time
Updated 25 Jun, 2026

Reflection time

Israel is the biggest source of instability in the Middle East, and it is high time the US ended its blind support to Tel Aviv, if it genuinely wants peace in the region.
Raised temperatures
25 Jun, 2026

Raised temperatures

THE fraught situation in Azad Jammu and Kashmir requires immense patience and cool heads. Temperatures are raised on...
Debatable remedy
25 Jun, 2026

Debatable remedy

THE Pakistan Psychiatric Society’s challenge to the Federal Shariat Court’s ruling on attempted suicide deserves...