Six people died and 107 were rescued after Indonesian ships ferry Virgo Transport 8 lost contact in the Java Sea. The vessel was carrying 243 people when contact was lost, leaving 130 still missing as rescuers continued their search on Sunday.
Virgo Transport 8 was traveling from Surabaya to Banjarmasin after leaving Surabaya at 10:33 on Saturday. Authorities received the initial distress report from PT Virgo at 04:10, and the ship was last reported about 150km south of Banjarmasin around 02:00 local time on Sunday.
Java Sea search effort
Indonesia's search and rescue agency, navy, maritime police and other parties set up a joint task force for the rescue effort. Ships and a helicopter were deployed, 280 personnel took part, and all vessels in the area of the Java Sea were alerted to report any sign of passengers. An operations post was also set up in the Trisakti Port area on Sunday morning.
Transport Minister Dudy Purwagandhi said the incident will be investigated by Indonesia's National Transport Safety Committee. Ahmad Supandi survived after being rescued by the vessel MV Haida, while his wife, Misnah, remained among the relatives of passengers waiting for news.
Rusmilawati at Trisakti Port
Rusmilawati, a Banjarmasin resident, went to the port to seek information about eight relatives who were passengers on the ship. She said, "They flew there initially, but for the return journey they wanted to try travelling by ship," and later added, "Hopefully they're safe," as families waited for updates.
The numbers on Sunday showed the scale of the gap between those found and those still missing: 213 passengers and 30 crew members were aboard, six had died, 107 had been rescued, and 130 were still unaccounted for. For families at the port, the search now turns on whether the remaining passengers are located in the Java Sea and Java Sea and whether the rescue effort can close that gap.
