Palm Oil Cargo Overload Suspected as KM Berkah Utama Sinks off East Jambi Coast, 3 Crew Missing
The KM Berkah Utama II, laden with palm oil cargo, sank in public waters near Simbur Naik village, Sabak Timur sub-district, Tanjung Jabung Timur Regency, Jambi province, on Thursday (9/4). Three crew members (ABK) from the ill-fated vessel are reported missing and are still being searched for.
According to information from Kanit Gakum Polairud Polres Sabak, Aiptu Nasution, the ship laden with palm oil cargo was en route from Air Hitam village to Muara Sabak. The vessel is estimated to have sunk on Thursday morning, around 07:20 WIB.
The Jambi Basarnas office stated that the cause of the sinking of KM Berkah Utama II is suspected to be due to excess cargo. While sailing in the waters off the east coast of Jambi on Thursday, KM Berkah Utama II was reported to be carrying around 40 tonnes of fresh fruit bunches (TBS).
Meanwhile, the three missing crew members are recorded as M Lawi, 36 years old, Umardi, 20 years old, and Fajar, 18 years old. All three are from Air Hitam village, Berbak sub-district, Tanjung Jabung Timur.
In response to the maritime accident, the Jambi Search and Rescue Office (Basarnas) immediately deployed the Tanjung Jabung Timur SAR Alert Unit along with the crew of the fast boat RBB (Rigid Buoyancy Boat) 01. With a strength of 10 personnel, they moved to the sinking location coordinates on Thursday afternoon.
“The team is estimated to take around 4 hours from the Jambi RBB 01 docking port to reach the incident site,” said Head of Jambi SAR Office Adah Sudarsa on Thursday evening. In addition to the Basarnas team, the search involves Polairud Polda Jambi, Posmat AL Nipah Pajang, and several fishermen members of the Tanjung Jabung Fishermen’s Association.
To maximise the search amid monitored cloudy weather conditions, the joint team is using various modern equipment, including Thermal Drones to monitor body heat temperatures from the air, Basarnas RBB boats, Polair patrol boats, as well as complete medical evacuation equipment.
As of now, the SAR team is still conducting sweeps around the incident location to find the three missing victims.