Hope fading for ferry survivors<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Cries and tears erupted as 10 survivors of the
\nmissing Cahaya Bahari ferry, packed with refugees fleeing strife-
\ntorn Tobelo district in North Maluku, were reunited with
\nrelatives in Bitung Port in North Sulawesi on Tuesday morning.<\/p>\n
Hopes for additional survivors, however, remain slim as rescue
\nworkers had not found any victims or ship's wreckage as of late
\nTuesday.<\/p>\n
North Sulawesi Governor A.J. Sondakh and wife Sintje-Sondakh
\nMandey greeted the survivors on board the navy battle ship KRI
\nMultatuli. Shortly afterward the Maluku refugees were admitted to
\nBitung Hospital.<\/p>\n
\"I have ordered all subdistrict chiefs in villages near the
\nshores to look for the remaining victims of the ferry which sank
\nin the seas of Sangihe Talaud regency,\" Sondakh was quoted by
\nAntara as saying.<\/p>\n
\"If any of them are still alive, treat them well. If bodies
\nare found, bury them properly,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Rescue efforts continued on Tuesday with four navy ships, two
\nmilitary airplanes and dozens of commercial and passenger vessels
\ndeployed to join the search.<\/p>\n
\"As of 8 p.m. Central Indonesia Time (WITA) the search of the
\nSea of Siau did not make any significant progress. We will
\ncontinue to monitor it,\" Soleman M. Kakoe, North Sulawesi chief
\nof National Rescue and Search Agency, said.<\/p>\n
At the Manado port administration office, dozens of body bags
\nhave been prepared.<\/p>\n
\"This is just in case if we discover the victims,\" Soleman
\nadded.<\/p>\n
There have been fears about the safety of the remaining ship's
\npassengers as the seas in the area are swarming with sharks.<\/p>\n
Radio contact with the wooden-hulled ship was lost after its
\ncaptain, M.M. Paparaga, radioed an \"SOS\" advising that the ship
\nwas taking on water during a violent storm at about 10:45 a.m. on
\nThursday. The ship was believed to be about 42 miles east of Siau
\nisland in the Sangihe and Talaud islands regency when it lost
\nradio contact.<\/p>\n
There is conflicting data about the total passengers on board
\nas the Cahaya Bahari was licensed to carry only 270 people.<\/p>\n
The National Search and Rescue Agency claimed that at least
\n492 passengers and crew may have been aboard, while Director
\nGeneral of Sea Communication Tjuk Sukardiman said that it had
\ncarried 400 people, 270 of whom were listed passengers and 650
\nsacks of copra.<\/p>\n
In Jakarta, Sukardiman admitted that the ferry sank due to
\n\"overcrowding, bad weather, and a leak in the ship's engine
\nroom.\"<\/p>\n
Minister of Communications Agum Gumelar said later in the day
\nthat the refugees had heard that Tobelo district would be raided
\nby their enemies, and ended up forcing the port officials to let
\nthem on board. \"The three port officials in Tobelo could not stop
\nthe ship from sailing because their lives were in danger,\" he
\nsaid. (10\/edt)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/hope-fading-for-ferry-survivors-1447893297",
"image": ""
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