Fatal ferry crash likely due to negligence

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Fatal ferry crash likely due to negligence

JAKARTA (JP): The ferry Kaltimas II which sunk with over 12 fatalities off Bali on Tuesday night, was months overdue for routine maintenance, says the head of Bali's transportation office.

"The owner should have not delayed the schedule for dry- docking," Made Sudhana said of the boat, which went down in storm-tossed seas between Ketapang in East Java and Gilimanuk in Bali.

While only twelve bodies have been recovered along the East Java coast, at least 28 remain missing and hope wanes with each passing hour.

The 275 gross-ton vessel last went in for maintenance in March of 1992.

Gilimanuk port spokesman Made Sudhiarta said Wednesday that of the 80 registered passengers on board the Kaltimas II, 38 are known to have survived the wreck.

Rough seas

The vessel was on its way from Ketapang to Gilimanuk, 125 km west of Denpasar, and was carrying six lorries, two containers and the 'Jawa Baru' bus laden with 32 passengers.

The vessel made a distress call to the port at 09:30 pm local time. Officers immediately launched a rescue operation but were hampered by the rough seas.

13 of the survivors were picked from the sea - some in bad condition - by fishermen based in Muncar, Banyuwangi, East Java, early on Wednesday. They were then taken to Ketapang port.

Meanwhile, officials at the state-owned hospital at Blambangan in East Java confirmed there are 12 known dead and that they have treated 15 survivors who have been discharged.

Other survivors managed to reach the Muncar coast by themselves and were helped by local fishermen. They were sent to the hospital at Blambangan.

The search and rescue mission continues.

The identities of the twelve dead victims could not be immediately established. Information was also not available on the exact number of people that had been traveling on the boat or on the material losses incurred.

The accident has caused a long queue of vehicles at both Ketapang and Gilimanuk port. Of the 14 ferries serving the crowded route, only eight are now running, Sudhiarta said.

He said three other vessels have joined the navy in the search for survivors while the other two are being repaired.

Ferries are the cheapest and most popular form of transport linking Java and Bali, as well as many other islands. (prs)