Jakarta, Sept 14. (dpa/GNA) – Search and rescue efforts for 129 people missing, following a deadly ferry accident in the Java Sea continue, authorities said on Monday.
At least six people have died after the ferry overturned in rough seas on Sunday morning. The ferry carrying 243 people was travelling from Surabaya on Indonesia’s main island of Java to Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan province on Borneo, around 500 kilometres away.
Rescuers fear that passengers may still be trapped inside the capsized vessel. The navy has dispatched divers from a special unit and an underwater drone to search for the missing, the search and rescue agency in Banjarmasin said.
Ships and aircraft had also been deployed to the site, alongside hundreds of personnel from the military, police and other agencies. A total of 108 people were recovered alive on Sunday.
Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 17,000 islands and around 280 million people, relies heavily on ferries to transport passengers and goods.
GNA