22 Survivors of the Virgo Ship Held at Sea

Twenty-two survivors of the Virgo Transport 8 accident, all confirmed to be in safe condition, were being held at sea. According to Basarnas chief Mohammad Syafii, the evacuation to Banjarmasin was hindered by high waves, requiring the transfer of several passengers.

“This morning the waves were above normal. When we transferred between the two vessels, they briefly collided, so repairs had to be carried out,” Syafii said at a press conference on the second day of the search and rescue operation for the Virgo Transport 8 accident at Trisakti Port, Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan, on Monday (14/9) evening.

The survivors had earlier been aboard the Cahaya Bahari, a wooden vessel, and were being held in the middle of the sea. The high waves prevented that vessel from approaching to transfer other victims to Banjarmasin.

As a result, the victims had to be moved using small boats to the KRI Nala. The waves slowed the evacuation. The KRI Nala was then also unable to berth directly at Trisakti Port due to its large size.

Syafii said the victims were subsequently transferred from the KRI Nala to the Kumai, a vessel belonging to the Indonesian Navy, before continuing the journey to Banjarmasin late on Monday (14/9) night.

“They had to be transferred again to the Kumai, which also belongs to the Indonesian Navy, and this is now in process. Hopefully within the next few hours they will arrive here,” he said.

Basarnas chief Mohammad Syafii confirmed that 114 victims had been found as of Monday (14/9) at 22.00 Central Indonesian Time, comprising 108 survivors and six deceased, meaning 129 people remained missing out of a total of 243 on board.

He explained that of the 114 victims found, 86 had arrived at Trisakti Port in Banjarmasin — 85 survivors and one deceased victim, whose body had been handed over to the family. A second deceased victim was evacuated at Syamsudin Noor Air Base in Banjarbaru and handed over to the Disaster Victim Identification team of the National Police headquarters for further medical examination.

The Virgo Transport 8 was carrying 243 passengers and was reported to have lost contact in the Masalembo waters of the Java Sea at 02.00 Central Indonesian Time on Sunday (13/9) whilst sailing from Surabaya to Banjarmasin, having departed on Saturday (12/9).