Indonesia says six killed, 129 missing after ferry capsizes off Java

BANJARMASIN: Rescuers in Indonesia said at least six people were killed and 129 others were missing after a ferry capsized in rough seas on Sunday, with one survivor recounting scenes of panic as passengers scrambled for life jackets.

The Virgo Transport 8 — which authorities said carried 213 passengers and 30 crew — lost contact with its shipping company early Sunday after departing from Surabaya in East Java.

Basarnas, Indonesia’s national search and rescue agency, said six people were killed and 129 others were missing. Another 108 people were rescued. “People were panicking. Some climbed onto tables, some were pushing each other,” survivor Rinto Arahap, 33, told AFP.

He said many passengers were asleep when the vessel began listing at around 2:00 am on Sunday (1800 GMT Saturday), adding that he heard what sounded like metal breaking about five hours into the journey.

With waves more than two metres (6.6 feet) high, people began shouting and fighting for life jackets as the vessel tilted, Arahap said.

“There was no warning from the ship’s crew. Basically, it was just someone taking the initiative, shouting, ‘Oh, the ship is listing, listing, listing,’” he said from a stretcher at a health facility in Banjarmasin, where survivors were taken. The first rescue ship carrying survivors arrived before nightfall at a pier in Banjarmasin, on the southern coast of Borneo island, an AFP reporter saw.