The shipwreck was found 14km from the site of the accident in the Padar Island Strait, near Labuan Bajo. - Photo: EPA
MAUMERE, (Indonesia): Indonesian rescuers found on Tuesday (Jan 6) a tourist boat that sank in rough seas nearly two weeks ago, and recovered the body of one of two missing Spanish victims, an official said.
Seven of those on board when the boat went down in eastern Indonesia on Dec 26 were rescued alive, while four others -- a Spanish man and three of his children -- were declared missing.
The search mission had already recovered the bodies of the man, 44-year-old football coach Fernando Martin Carreras, and his daughter.
Fathur Rahman, head of the local search and rescue agency, said the shipwreck was found on Tuesday about 14 kilometres (8.5 miles) from the site of the accident in the Padar Island Strait, near the popular tourist destination of Labuan Bajo.
"The third victim was retrieved after we were informed by a fisherman that he had discovered a body and the hull of the boat," Fathur said at a press conference.
The body was taken to hospital for identification, he added.
Carreras's wife and one of their daughters were among those who were rescued alive when the boat sank.
The search for the last missing victim, a boy from the same family, would continue on Wednesday, the rescue official said.
The search has included "sweeping nearby islands, deploying sonar and carrying out dives", and will now expand to cover a larger area, added Fathur.
Maritime accidents occur regularly in Indonesia, a Southeast Asian archipelago of around 17,000 islands, often due to lax safety standards or bad weather. - AFP
