Bali-bound ferry sinks, over 30 still missing
Bali-bound ferry sinks, over 30 still missing
DENPASAR, Bali (JP): More than 30 people are missing after the
Citra Mandala Bakti ferry traveling from Ketapang Port in
Banyuwangi, East Java sank in the Bali Strait in the early hours
of Thursday, leaving at least four passengers dead, officials
said.
Jembrana Police chief Lt. Col. Happy Kartika said as of 6 p.m.
on Thursday a total of 51 survivors were found in the ordeal. He
added that some 500 rescue workers have been deployed to search
the waters of the strait to find the missing passengers.
Of the bodies discovered on Thursday, only two of them were
identified, namely Djufri, 67, a local from Klatakan in Jembrana
regency and Iif Syafruddin, 25, a resident of Tasikmalaya in West
Java, according to Happy.
There was confusion over the death toll, with some sources
saying that at least eight died in the accident -- three bodies
washed up at Pangambenan beach near Gilimanuk in Bali while five
others were found on the shores of Banyuwangi.
Preliminary examination concluded that the Japanese-made ferry
might have capsized at dawn around 3 a.m, according to Happy.
"Overcapacity is possibly one of the causes of the incident,
but we'd better wait for the investigation," Happy said. At least
15 passengers have been questioned over the accident.
The 28-year-old ferry, reportedly carrying 15 cars and two
motorcycles, left the Ketapang harbor at around 6 p.m. on
Wednesday. It usually takes a ferry half an hour to reach
Gilimanuk port in Bali.
According to head of Ketapang-Gilimanuk river and sea
transportation office, Karngun Sedono, the ferry, belonging to PT
Jembatan Madura Ferry, was loaded with 86 people, among them 14
crew members.
"It is certain that the ship was not overloaded," he said.
A source in the transport office said that a few minutes after
the ship embarked, the ferry captain Abdul Rasyid Bandu called
through the radio to inform about engine trouble.
Rescue ships were dispatched only two hours later at 7:55
p.m., the source, who requested anonymity, said.
He said the 266-seat ferry capsized after being hit by strong
waves and winds while it was floating idle for sometime due to
engine trouble.
"Sudden waves and strong winds have occurred quite often over
the past couple of weeks," he said.
By late Thursday the wreckage of the ferry remained
undiscovered.
The ferry accident is the second recorded this year in the
country. On May 7, the Masnait ferry carrying at least 130
passengers sank in the Leihitu waters off Maluku's capital Ambon.
The manifest listed 62 passengers and 12 crew members, but rescue
teams recovered 41 bodies, while 85 people survived. (zen/edt)