31 missing after fishing boat sinks off Bengkulu

Bahrul Ilmi Yakub, The Jakarta Post, Palembang

At least three bodies and one survivor were found and 31 others were still missing after a fishing boat sank in bad weather off Bengkulu province, rescuers said on Monday.

Comr. I Dewa Gede Butirwa, a deputy Bengkulu marine police chief who is also a member of the search and rescue team, said the 93-ton Kuda Mas vessel was believed to have capsized on Wednesday at 8 p.m. in rough seas between Mego Island and Sanding Island, located at about 120 kilometers from the Baay port in Bengkulu.

He said it had been hit by strong waves before sinking, and that the Baay port authorities had last contacted the captain at 6 p.m.

The ill-fated boat left from the Baay port for waters off Mego, where its 35 crew members were to go fishing, he told The Jakarta Post.

The lone survivor was identified as Dedit, 30, who was found alive floating with a life preserver, while the dead victims were Adi, 26, Rusli, 25 and Zakaria, 22.

The traumatized Dedit, who is unable to speak yet, is receiving medical treatment at a clinic near the Maluku port, the body of Adi had been buried, while the two other bodies were undergoing autopsies at a separate hospital.

Butirwa said the search was continuing for the 31 missing fishermen and that it would be concluded in two weeks.

The rescuers, involving navy and marine personnel, were using three fishing vessels and one tug boat in their operation, he said, adding that bad weather caused by strong waves were hampering the search.

Officials at the Baay port said hopes were thin for the rescue team to find more survivors, fearing the missing victims were dead.

A helicopter had been dispatched to assist the rescue team, they said.

The ill-fated Kuda Mas boat often made fishing trips to Mego for at least three days.

In a separate accident, at least five people are still missing after their vessel KM Abadi Jaya 03 sank in the Selayar Strait off the coast of the Southeast Sulawesi capital of Kendari on Feb. 17 at around 4 a.m.

The missing include the boat's captain, M. Yani. Six other crew members had been found alive, Antara reported on Monday.

Roky Asikin, head of the Kendari search and rescue office, was quoted as saying that the 37-ton boat, carrying basic commodities, capsized after being hit by strong waves while traveling from Selayar to Bulukumba district in South Sulawesi.

He advised local residents to postpone fishing trips until the weather was better.