JAKARTA: Indonesian authorities extended their search on Saturday (Sept 19) for dozens of people still missing after a passenger ferry sank in the Java Sea last week, a rescue official said.
The Virgo Transport 8 was carrying 213 passengers and 30 crew when it lost contact with its shipping company after departing from Indonesia's second city of Surabaya on Java island on Sunday, headed for Banjarmasin on Borneo.
Rescuers recovered three bodies from the submerged ship on Friday, bringing the confirmed death toll to nine, with 126 others still missing, national search and rescue agency Barsanas said.
Basarnas operations director Yudhi Bramantyo said authorities decided to extend the search while discussions were held on how to right the ferry. Some of the remaining victims are feared trapped inside.
"We have decided to extend this operation for the next seven days while awaiting the results of the discussion and steps that will be taken by the salvage team," Yudhi told a news conference.
Divers are being sent to the shipwreck to try to search for the missing, Yudhi said.
"It is our hope that the weather is favourable tomorrow so that the divers can carry out their activities," he said.
Search-and-rescue operations typically last for seven days in Indonesia, and authorities can extend them based on factors including an assessment that some of the victims could still be recovered.
Marine accidents are a regular occurrence in Indonesia, a vast South-East Asian archipelago of more than 17,000 islands that relies heavily on boat connections for daily transport and tourism.
Lax safety standards and unpredictable weather are often the main reasons for disasters. - AFP
