DPR on Ferry Fire: Maritime Accidents Keep Happening Again and Again

Lasarus, chair of Commission V of the Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR), criticised the Transport Ministry following a fire aboard the passenger motor vessel KMP Batumandi at Merak Port, Cilegon, Banten, on Tuesday (20 October).

The fire adds to a series of maritime accidents in Indonesia in 2026.

Lasarus said he had called for the Transport Ministry to conduct an evaluation, but ship accidents continued to recur.

“As a result, these incidents keep happening again and again. The Directorate General of Sea Transportation at the Transport Ministry has made no improvements. That is our assessment,” Lasarus said when contacted on Wednesday (21 October).

Lasarus suspected that the ministry had not acted on his side’s request for an evaluation of maritime accidents.

“We have already asked for a comprehensive evaluation. It seems that this has not been done,” Lasarus said.

He also said the Transport Ministry’s response to ship accidents had been weak.

“The ministry’s response has been very weak in addressing ship fires that keep happening again and again,” he said.

He questioned why the Transport Ministry had not revised or improved its mechanisms or standard operating procedures (SOPs) for ship inspections.

“If no improvements are made to a mechanism that has already failed, then it is still being used. If an SOP has failed, it should no longer be used,” he said.

He said new mechanisms or SOPs for ship inspections were therefore needed to ensure passenger safety at sea.

KMP Batumandi caught fire in the Sunda Strait near Merak Port in Cilegon, Banten, on Tuesday afternoon (20 October).

According to a written statement from the Banten Search and Rescue Office, all 460 people aboard—420 passengers and 40 crew members—were evacuated.

All passengers and crew were evacuated safely. However, 11 people required further medical treatment at Krakatau Medika Hospital in Cilegon.

PT ASDP Corporate Secretary Windy Andale said the fire was believed to have started in the vessel’s stern at around 4.15pm, on the upper deck used to carry small vehicles.

Windy said the company would coordinate with the police to investigate the cause of the fire.

“The initial suspicion is that sparks came from the stern area. However, we are still investigating this and will coordinate with the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) and the police while monitoring the cause of the fire,” she said.