Almost 80 people are still missing almost 24 hours after a ferry ran into trouble in rough seas off Indonesia, with authorities not ruling out the possibility of a sinking.
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However, there was no immediate indication if teams had been dispatched to the scene to locate the ferry’s passengers.
“My niece and her husband have not been found”, said Sia, who, like many Indonesians, goes by just one name.
Siwa Port head Muhammad Ridwan said that the KMP Marina TB2 ferry was carrying 91 adults and sixteen children.
When asked whether the boat had sunk, South Sulawesi police spokesman Frans Barung told reporters: “Maybe yes, maybe no”.
Searchers also found an inflated life raft with emergency supplies drifting in the sea with no people on it, he said.
Earlier, six rescue boats and ships were dispatched after they received a distress call from the crew, who reported that the vessel was starting to take on water about 21 kilometers (13 miles) southeast of Siwa port, Asikin said. Rescue authorities say there are no reports so far that the boat has capsized.
Television footage showed dozens of family members anxiously waiting for their loved ones at the Siwa port on Sunday.
Three ships have been deployed to find the missing ferry, which police said was still afloat with a broken engine, but out of radio contact.
But across Indonesia – a sprawling archipelago of more than 17,000 islands – maritime accidents are common, with overcrowding, poor maintenance and treacherous weather often leading to disaster.
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More than 100 people were trapped aboard an Indonesian passenger boat that broke down in rough waters Saturday afternoon, and rescuers were attempting to reach the vessel.
