Storm Capsizes ferry in Indonesia, 260 feared dead

Sunday, January 11, 2009 at 10:01 pm

JAKARTA: An Indonesian ferry carrying 260 passengers capsized and sank after being battered by a large wave in bad weather in the country’s east on Sunday, officials said.

Eighteen people including one of the crew had been rescued, said Bambang Ervan, a spokesman for the Transport Ministry.

Transport Minister Jusman Syafi’i Djamal said 150 people had been taken off the ferry, but their condition was unknown and he gave no further details. The discrepancy in the number of possible survivors could not immediately be clarified.

Officials said the ferry sank in darkness in the early hours of Sunday, which would have made it even more difficult for survivors.

“So far 18 people, including one crew member, have been rescued by a passing boat. We have dispatched a search and rescue team, navy patrol and others to find missing people,” Ervan said.

“Based on interviews with the surviving crew member, the ship was hit by a huge wave which caused it to turn upside down.”

The ferry was traveling from Pare-Pare on the west coast of Sulawesi island to the city of Samarinda on Indonesia’s side of Borneo island when it ran into bad weather, said Taufik Bulu, head of maritime safety at Pare-Pare port.

He said the ferry was carrying 260 passengers and 17 crew.

Those rescued were taken to the town of Majene, north of Pare-Pare. Muhammad Junaidi, an official at Majene port, told Reuters the ferry was hit by the wave about 60 km (40 miles) offshore from Majene and then sank.

Indonesia’s Elshinta radio station broadcast the sound of relatives weeping as they waited in Samarinda for news of those who had been aboard the ferry.

Minister Djamal said there had been a tropical cyclone in the area at the time.

Indonesia relies heavily on ferry services to connect the main islands in the archipelago, the world’s largest.

But accidents are common, largely because of years of under-investment in the country’s infrastructure and a tendency to overload ferries.

Indonesia’s Metro TV, quoting an official in Pare-Pare, said the ferry was not overcrowded and had the capacity to carry up to 300 passengers.

Indonesia has come under considerable pressure in recent years to improve its transportation sector following several serious accidents.