One more survivor found after Sumbawa ship accident

Trisna Wahyuni and I.D. Nugroho, Mataram/Surabaya

A senior Naval officer revealed on Wednesday that one of its personnel survived the capsizing of a ship in waters off the eastern island of Sumbawa, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) province.

With the discovery of the man, the people still missing after the incident last Friday officially totaled at least three, while 15 others were rescued.

Chief of Ampenan Naval base in West Nusa Tenggara province, Lt. Col. R. Edi Surjanto, said on Wednesday that the Naval officer was Supriyadi.

Edi would not go into detail as to where Supriyadi was discovered, only saying that he was rescued by fishermen, who took him to Situbondo, East Java province for medical treatment.

Head of Mataram Search and Rescue (SAR) Agency I Gde Budisma said that the SAR team was still looking for victims of the incident, assisted by the Naval vessel, KRI Sura.

"The SAR team found only debris, assumed to have been part of the ship, in waters off Obel-obel, East Lombok," he said.

Officials in Surabaya have said that the cargo ship was manned by 19 crew members, including the captain.

However, a survivor, Petrus Nongo, who said he was a passenger on the cargo ship, claimed that there were 30 people aboard, including 19 crew members.

"I remember there was a mother and baby aboard, and three other young ladies from Flores, whom I knew. But I have no idea where they are now," he said in Mataram, the provincial capital of West Nusa Tenggara, on Wednesday.

A cargo ship is not supposed to carry passengers, but violations of this rule often occur. The fact that a Naval officer was also aboard the ship has lent credence to the allegation that the ship's officials had violated the rule, allowing passengers to board the vessel.

Separately, in Surabaya, Sumantri, the deputy director of PT Surya Timur Sejahtera -- the owner of the ill-fated ship -- said that the 14 crew members who survived the incident were still being treated at the hospital.

They were suffering from mental shock,said Sumantri.

The crew was saved by two ships that were in the area. The cargo ship, Artomoro I capsized on Friday after it was hit by strong waves in waters off Sumbawa.

Sumantri denied that there were 11 passengers aboard, in addition to the crew.

When the ship departed from Surabaya on Friday, there were no passengers at all on board, as checked by the port authority, he said.

Separately, chief of Tanjung Perak port, Capt. Subagyo, refused to confirm whether or not passengers had been aboard, adding that his staff were investigating the matter.