The official death toll from a passenger ship that capsized and sank in the Java Sea has risen to 20, with rescuers expecting to find more bodies as the ongoing underwater search widens, officials said.
The Virgo Transport 8 ferry was carrying 243 people, including 30 crew members, as well as an unknown number of vehicles, when it capsized in bad weather early on Sept 13 during a routine voyage from Surabaya in East Java to Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan.
Coast guard and Navy personnel were able to recover eight bodies from inside the ship over the past three days and also found two bodies that had been washed ashore in Central Kalimantan province around 253km from the location of the accident, head of National Rescue Agency Mohammad Syafii said.
As of yesterday, the total death toll stood at 20, with 115 people still missing and 108 listed as survivors, he said.
Yesterday’s search focused on looking for more bodies in the ship’s cabins, said I Putu Sudayana, head of the Banjarmasin rescue agency.
Divers managed to break the windows of the cabins on Tuesday but could not enter due to murky water and strong currents, making it impossible to retrieve bodies that had already been spotted.
After that, if possible, rescuers will shift the search to the vehicles on the ferry, but it could prove challenging, with many appearing to be piled on top of each other.
“This poses risks to the diving team,” Putu said.
“If it is feasible and safe, we will carry out the search.”
Search and rescue operations have been extended until Sunday next week. — Reuters
