JAKARTA, Feb 25: An Indonesian ferry gutted by a deadly fire last week sank unexpectedly on Sunday with investigation teams on board, leaving one person dead and three missing as the death toll from the initial tragedy climbed to 42.

The ferry leaned to the right and rapidly sunk off the coast of Jakarta with 16 people on board, according to a reporter who was on the ship.

The Levina I ferry, which had been towed to a location some seven nautical miles north of Jakarta's Tanjung Priok harbour, sunk on Sunday afternoon as teams from the national police and the National Transport Safety Committee, were on board, the head of the Jakarta air and sea police, Adjunct Senior Commissioner Frederick Kalembang said.

“Yes, it sank and we are still searching for missing people,” said Kalembang, declining to give further details.

A cameraman who was pulled from the sinking Levina I died later at the Port Medical Centre in Tanjung Priok, said a nurse at the hospital, who only identified herself as Dini.

“Suherman died around 2:30 pm (0730 GMT),” said Dini. The cameraman, from the LaTivi television station, had been rushed to the hospital after being pulled from the ship.

National Transport Safety Committee chairman Setyo Raharjo confirmed that the Levina I ferry had sunk and that a search was under way to look for three missing people.—AFP