Basarnas: Search Continues for 71 Missing Virgo Transport 8 Victims
Basarnas: Search Continues for 71 Missing Virgo Transport 8 Victims
Reporter
September 26, 2026 | 09:15 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) reported that as many as 71 victims of the KM Virgo Transport 8 passenger ship accident in the waters of the Java Sea are still missing as of Saturday, September 26, 2026. So far, 172 of the 243 victims of the KM Virgo accident have been found. Search and Rescue (SAR) operations for the victims are ongoing.
Basarnas Head Air Marshal TNI M Syafii said it will evacuate and handle any discovery according to procedure. “Our main focus is to find the victims who are still missing and provide certainty to the families,” he said in an official statement on Saturday, September 26, 2026.
Out of the total number of victims found, 108 people were found in a safe condition, while 64 people were found dead. In the afternoon operation, the combined diving team conducted Sortie-IV from KN SAR Kamajaya at 16.05 WITA (Central Indonesia Time) to continue searching for victims around the location where the ship sank.
At 16.10 WITA, the SAR team also successfully brought one package to the surface. Four packages were subsequently taken to KRI Gusti Ngurah Rai (GNR) ship for further handling.
Meanwhile, the Palangka Raya SAR Office said on Saturday, September 26, 2026, at 11.52 WIB (Western Indonesia Time), the combined SAR team again evacuated a black package found in Sungai Cabang, Pangkalan Bun, Kotawaringin Barat Regency.
At 18.18 WITA, HS Panther 1311 helicopter landed at Lanud Syamsudin Noor carrying four packages of evacuation results for further identification and handling according to procedures.
Syafii said the Combined SAR Team is continuously strengthening coordination and synergy of all its elements, both in the search at the main accident location and in areas with the potential to yield victims.
Read: Nine Bodies Recovered From Virgo 8 Wreckage on 11th SAR Day
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