GILIMANUK, Indonesia — Indonesian rescue teams continued their search efforts Thursday to locate 29 individuals still missing after a ferry incident near Bali led to six confirmed fatalities the previous night.
Among the recovered bodies were a 3-year-old boy and his mother, added to the tally of victims by Thursday afternoon. These six bodies, found by rescuers, are to be returned to their families in Banyuwangi, according to officials.
By Thursday, rescue operations had managed to save 30 individuals from the craft’s total of 53 passengers and 12 crew members, as reported by Mohammad Syafii, head of the National Search and Rescue Agency, in a broadcast on Metro TV.
The KMP Tunu Pratama Jaya capsized almost half an hour after departing Ketapang port in East Java, heading for Bali’s Gilimanuk port—a short voyage spanning roughly 5 kilometers (3.1 miles).
Efforts to find survivors engaged a helicopter and 15 boats, with the help of local fishermen and onshore residents. Overnight searches concentrated on the travel lane’s northern section, yet shifted to the southern region after water currents redirected from midnight to morning, as explained by Syafii.
“We believe some individuals might still be within the submerged ferry. Presently, our focus remains on surface searches,” stated Nanang Sigit, the head of Surabaya Search and Rescue.
Weather conditions posed significant challenges to the search operation, with waves reaching heights of up to 2 meters (6.5 feet) and darkness hampering night-time efforts. Improved daylight conditions on Thursday saw waves rise yet further to 2.5 meters (8.2 feet) driven by persistent currents and blustery winds, reported the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency.
“In today’s operation, emphasis was put on surface water searches, as early victims were discovered between the accident site and Gilimanuk port,” Sigit commented Thursday morning.
An officer stationed at the port observed the ferry’s sinking and mobilized rescuers. “Communication via radio failed from the outset. Contact was finally established with other company vessels, but the ferry had already begun to list,” Sigit disclosed.
Many of the rescued individuals were found unconscious, having braved turbulent waters for several hours, according to Banyuwangi Police Chief Rama Samtama Putra.
Survivors received medical attention in Bali’s Jembrana Regional Hospital and at the Gilimanuk port’s office. Families hurried to the port, some in distress, seeking news of their missing relatives.
Authorities launched an inquiry into the ferry accident’s cause. Initial survival accounts suggested a leakage originating in the ferry’s engine room, which had been transporting 22 vehicles, including 14 trucks, at the time of the catastrophe.
Supardi, a 64-year-old survivor, recounted his urge to leap into the sea when the vessel began tilting, yet ended up sinking with it to around 7 meters (23 feet) deep, enabling his ascent to the surface. He, along with three others, used life jackets for buoyancy to keep afloat.
Marine accidents remain all too frequent in Indonesia, a nation composed of over 17,000 islands. Ferries are pivotal for transit, though safety protocols can often fall short.