Hopes are fading for 78 people still missing from a ferry that sank off Indonesia’s eastern island of Sulawesi, officials say. The ship, carrying 108 passengers and 10 crew members, has still not been found after it was hit by a storm on Saturday, around the Bone Strait of South Sulawesi, about 19 kilometers from Siwa – the ship’s destination.
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4 others, including a young boy, were spotted by fishermen desperately clinging to fish traps and buoys, and were dragged aboard exhausted and taken to hospital.
Rescue efforts were hampered on Sunday by rough conditions and waves up to five meters high.
“Other passengers are still out in the sea wearing life jackets and we’re evacuating”, he added.
Alamsyah said the sunken ship was located 22km from the port in the town of Siwa at a depth of about 200m, but inadequate equipment prevented rescue workers from reaching it.
The ferry left the southeastern side of Sulawesi yesterday morning and was heading across the Gulf of Boni for South Slaws.
“We’re preparing a large ship to search for the ferry because waves are high”, Ridwan said, as reported by tempo.co on Saturday. 4 people have been rescued, in accordance to the Catastrophe Administration Agency After initial reports the vessel could have capsized, authorities have been battling the waves to rescue the ship about 12 miles from Siwa, a cops officers spokesman stated.
There had been warnings about extreme weather in the area in the days leading up to the accident, with strong winds and rough seas.
Indonesia relies heavily on passenger boats to connect 17,000 islands but the transport sector has a poor safety record.
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The latest contact received from the boat’s captain said that all people on board were trying to survive, but that water was starting to enter the boat, Asikin said.
