KMP Batumandi Fire Suspected to Have Started at the Stern

PT ASDP Corporate Secretary Windy Andale said the fire aboard the KMP Batumandi was suspected to have started at the stern at around 4.15pm local time, on the upper deck used to carry small vehicles.

“There was provisionally suspected to have been a spark from the stern area. However, we are still investigating this, and will coordinate with Basarnas and the police while monitoring the cause of the fire,” Windy said in a live interview with CNN Indonesia TV on Tuesday evening (20 October).

Windy confirmed that all passengers and crew had been evacuated. Efforts to contain the fire were still under way.

“Our priority is evacuating passengers and dealing with the situation at the scene. We were informed that by around 5pm, the passengers and crew had been evacuated,” Windy said.

Regarding the KMP Batumandi’s passenger manifest, Windy said the company was still waiting for information from personnel at the scene.

“We are currently rechecking the passenger data. We are also coordinating with all stakeholders and everyone at the scene to handle the victims,” she said.

“So far, we can say that all passengers and crew have been evacuated and there have been no fatalities,” she added.

Windy said it was not yet clear whether services at Merak Port would be disrupted, as the company was still coordinating its response.

“We cannot yet confirm any service disruption because we are continuing to coordinate. Teams at the scene are still working, including on assistance for those affected,” she said.

The joint search and rescue team was focused on extinguishing the remaining flames on the vessel.

Rizky Dwianto, head of operations and readiness at the Banten Basarnas sub-section, likewise said all passengers had been evacuated, according to information received by officers at the scene.

“The latest information we have received on the KMP Batumandi vessel accident is that all passengers have been successfully evacuated,” Rizky said in Cilegon on Tuesday.

He explained that the evacuation was carried out in stages with the help of various vessels, including patrol boats, fishing boats, rubber boats and a Basarnas Banten rigid inflatable boat (RIB). The passengers were then taken to and gathered at Executive Pier 6 at Merak Port.

Authorities were still recording the number of passengers and checking it against the ship’s manifest. Basarnas Banten was coordinating with several relevant parties to verify the figures.