Search continues for 25 missing after ship capsizes in central Indonesia; 17 have been rescued

A rescue team evacuating some survivors after a ferry with 43 passengers sank in the the Makassar strait. Twenty-sfive people were missing on May 28 after a ferry ran out of fuel and sank in bad weather off the coast of Indonesia, officials said. - AFP

JAKARTA, May 29 (Xinhua): A search is continuing for the 25 people still unaccounted for after a ship with about 42 people aboard sank in waters off the South Sulawesi province in central Indonesia, a provincial official has confirmed.

The vessel capsized at 13:00 local time in the Makassar Strait on Thursday, but the incident was reported to the provincial search and rescue office on Saturday (May 28), said Wahid D.J., a senior official at the office.

"After receiving the information today, we immediately deployed our personnel and equipment to the scene for a search and rescue mission," he told Xinhua.

"About 45 rescuers and a ship have already been on the spot near a small island," the official said, adding that a plane or chopper will be dispatched to join the search.

So far, 17 people on board the ill-fated vessel have been rescued.

According to him, the ship suffered an engine failure when it was hit by huge waves in the strait after departing from the Paotere Harbor in Makassar, the capital of the province.

The ship was heading to a seaport in Pangkajene district. - Xinhua