SAR Team Discovers Liferaft Believed to Belong to KM Virgo 8

A joint SAR team has discovered a liferaft, believed to belong to the KM Virgo Transport 8, which experienced a capsizing incident in the Java Sea on Wednesday (16/9).

“A liferaft suspected to originate from the vessel was found in the Kuala Pembuang waters,” stated I Putu Sudayana, Head of the Banjarmaste Class A Search and Rescue Office, in a statement on Thursday (17/9).

Based on visual monitoring conducted on Wednesday, the hull of the KM Virgo Transport 8 was no longer visible on the sea surface from a distance of 1.1 nautical miles.

“Underwater detection by the Indonesian Navy using active sonar successfully identified the position of the object suspected to be the ship at coordinates 04°31,667’ S - 114°00,245’ E, with a shift of approximately 500 yards southeast from its previous position,” he added.

For the fifth day of the SAR operation on Thursday, the search strategy has been divided into two main sectors: aerial and maritime searches.

The aerial component involves helicopters from Basarnas, the National Police, and the Indonesian Navy, focusing on sweeping an area of approximately 1,489 square nautical miles.

Meanwhile, the maritime component is conducting searches divided into four main sectors, covering a total area of approximately 5,600 square nautical miles.

“This SAR operation involves hundreds of personnel from various agencies. Various primary equipment has also been deployed, including SAR vessels, Indonesian Navy warships, helicopters, aircraft, as well as supporting equipment for searching and evacuation,” said Putu.

According to Putu, the field teams frequently face challenges due to rapid changes in weather during the search operation.

“Nevertheless, current weather conditions are reported as partly cloudy with wave heights ranging between 1 to 1.5 metres, which still allows the operation to be carried out optimally,” he said.

KM Virgo Transport 8 was reported to have lost contact in the Java Sea waters on Sunday (13/9) at 02:00 WITA, while sailing from Surabaya to Banjarmasin since Saturday (12/9). The KM Virgo is reported to be carrying 243 people, including passengers and crew.

As of Monday (14/9), out of the 243 people on board, 114 have been successfully found, while the remaining 129 are still being searched for.