Basarnas conducts search for 243 passengers aboard Virgo Ship

A series of reports from Sunday (13/9) regarding the search and rescue efforts for passengers of the Virgo Ship, which lost contact in the Java Sea, are presented here.

1.) Virgo Ship carries 243 people lost contact in Java Sea waters

Basarnas has deployed SAR teams to search for the Virgo Transport 8, which lost contact in the Java Sea waters while sailing from Surabaya to Banjarmasin carrying 243 people on Sunday (13/9). The Head of the Banjarmasin Class A Search and Rescue Office, I Putu Sudayana, acting as the SAR Mission Coordinator, stated during a press conference in Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan, on Sunday morning, that the vessel was reported to have lost contact around 02:00 WITA after encountering bad weather conditions during its journey.

2.) Basarnas: Six dead in Virgo Transport 8 accident

Basarnas has reported preliminary data indicating six fatalities among the 103 individuals evacuated following the accident involving the Virgo Transport 8, which was carrying 243 people in the Java Sea as of Sunday. The Head of the Banjarmasin Class A Search and Rescue Office, I Putu Sudayana, stated in Banjarmasin on Sunday that the six deceased victims were evacuated by the vessels TB Mauhaw IX and TB TCP, while all victims evacuated by the MV Haida were reported to be safe.

3.) Basarnas evacuates 103 passengers of Virgo Transport 8 in the Java Sea

Basarnas reported that joint SAR teams successfully evacuated 103 out of the total 243 passengers of the Virgo Transport 8, with one death reported in a separate update. The Head of the Banjarmasin Class A Search and Rescue Office, I Putu Sudayana, acting as the SAR Mission Coordinator, stated that these 103 individuals were evacuated using three vessels deployed in the search for the Virgo Transport 8, which had previously lost contact in the Java Sea waters.

4.) Basarnas deploys helicopter to search for ship accident victims in the Java Sea

Basarnas has deployed one helicopter to strengthen the search for victims of the Virgo Transport 8 accident in the Java Sea, dispatched from Surabaya to conduct immediate searches at the location. The Head of the Banjarmasin Class A Search and Rescue Office, I Putu Sudayana, stated that the deployment of aerial assets is part of the joint SAR team’s efforts to optimise the search for the vessel and passengers still being managed under the operation.

5.) Passengers of Virgo Ship survive thanks to a piece of plywood

Riyanda (30), one of the survivors of the Virgo Transport 8 which sank in the Java Sea, claimed he survived by clinging to a piece of plywood. “After jumping from the ship, I held onto the plywood,” said Riyanda when met at Trisakti Port, Banjarmasin, on Sunday night. The man, originally from Cilacap, Central Java, first realised the ship was sinking after hearing the commotion of panicking passengers on Saturday (12/9) at approximately 23:30 WITA.