Indonesia ferry death toll hits 71 as search enters 16th day

JAKARTA – The death toll from an Indonesian ship that capsized more than two weeks ago rose to 71 on Sept 28, as divers braved leaking fuel and dangerously unsound structures to try to find passengers still listed as missing.

The Virgo Transport 8 ferry was carrying 243 people when it capsized in bad weather in the Java Sea on Sept 13 during a voyage from Surabaya in East Java to Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan. Authorities said 108 people survived.

Divers were navigating through unstable debris on the 16th day of the search, Hardiansyah Putra, a senior official from the country’s search and rescue agency, said.

Searchers recovered five bodies from inside the 4,277-ton ship on Sept 28, senior agency official I Putu Sudayana said.

The vessel kept tilting from side to side, sharp objects were scattered throughout the wreckage, and dense gas concentrations and leaking fuel were adding to the hazards, Putu added.

“Because of these reasons, the divers weren’t able to get into the compartments,” he said.

The ship’s operator needed to right the ship and bring it to the surface, he added.

The slow progress of the search has added to the anguish for distraught friends and relatives waiting for news.

The ship’s owner and its insurance company were in the process of appointing a lead salvage contractor, Heri Purwanto, the head of Banjarmasin’s port authority, said.

Two contractors, from the United States and Britain, are being considered alongside local firm PT Jasa Salvage Indonesia (Jasalindo), Heri said. REUTERS