Six dead, 97 rescued as search continues for missing Indonesian ferry in Java Sea

JAKARTA, Indonesia — Six people have died and 97 have been rescued from an Indonesian passenger ferry that went missing in the Java Sea, the country's search and rescue agency said Sunday, as crews continued searching for the remaining passengers.

The vessel, Virgo Transport 8, was carrying 243 people when contact was lost in bad weather, according to the National Search and Rescue Agency, known as Basarnas. The ferry was traveling from Surabaya, East Java, to Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan.

Officials said the ship was last reported about 150 km (93 miles) south of Banjarmasin at around 2 a.m. local time Sunday (18:00 GMT Saturday). The operator, PT Virgo, received an initial distress report at 4:10 a.m., authorities said. The ferry left Surabaya at 10:33 a.m. Saturday and was scheduled to arrive in Banjarmasin at 2 p.m. Sunday, according to maritime monitoring data cited by officials.

A joint task force involving Basarnas, the Indonesian Navy, maritime police and other agencies has been deployed. Ships and a helicopter have been sent to the scene, and other vessels in that part of the Java Sea have been alerted to report signs of any passengers. An operations post for handling the accident was set up Sunday morning in the Trisakti Port area.

At Trisakti Port, families waited for information. Rusmilawati, a Banjarmasin resident, came to seek news of eight relatives who were aboard. They had flown to Java to visit the tombs of several Islamic scholars and chose to return by ship. "They flew there initially, but for the return journey they wanted to try travelling by ship," she told BBC Indonesia. As of Sunday afternoon local time, she said she had not received information from officials about whether her relatives had been rescued. The family's last contact came through a WhatsApp status update from one relative: "The waves are really frightening tonight. Or is this just what it's normally like travelling by ship, rocking and crashing against the waves?" Rusmilawati said, "Hopefully they're safe."

Elsewhere, Misnah broke down in tears after learning that her husband, Ahmad Supandi, had survived. Ahmad, a freight driver, had been aboard Virgo Transport 8 and was later rescued by the vessel MV Haida, according to authorities and family members. At Tanjung Perak Port in Surabaya, relatives of crew members also sought information about their loved ones. One relative, Fredy, said his youngest sibling, Stevie Manuhua, worked aboard the vessel as a keyboard player, entertaining passengers. "We spoke two days ago when the ship was docked in Surabaya. After that, there was no news until now," Fredy said. He said he still had not received any information about his sibling's whereabouts.

The incident is the latest in a string of ferry accidents in Indonesia. Last month, a separate ferry caught fire off Madura island, killing five people. The Indonesian archipelago has more than 17,000 islands, and ferries are a common form of transport. For many communities, they are the only practical link between islands, which makes maritime safety a persistent national concern. Past disasters have been blamed on bad weather, overcrowding and weak safety enforcement, and the latest case is likely to renew scrutiny of how Indonesia oversees its busy ferry routes.

Officials cautioned that the rescue effort was still underway and that the number of survivors could change. Search teams were expected to keep working as long as weather and sea conditions allowed, with authorities urging vessels in the area to report anything unusual.