Indonesia ferry fire: 5 dead, 41 missing after passenger ship catches fire off East Java coast
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Indonesia ferry fire: 5 dead, 41 missing after passenger ship catches fire off East Java coast")
Passenger ferry carrying 271 people catches fire off the Java Sea, with rescue operations underway to evacuate passengers and crew from the vessel. Photograph: (Indonesia Search and Rescue Agency / AFP)
At least five people were killed and 41 remain missing after a passenger ferry caught fire off Indonesia's East Java coast. Rescue operations continue.
At least five people were killed, and 41 others are still missing after a passenger ferry caught fire off the coast of Madura Island, East Java, on Sunday Morning. The ferry KMP Mutiara Sentosa 2 was travelling from Tanjung Perak Port in Indonesia’s second-largest city, Surabaya in East Java, to Makassar city in South Sulawesi when the ship's captain reported the fire incident. There were 271 passengers and crew members on board; 225 of them have been rescued, Reuters reported, citing agency data. The cause of the fire still remains undetermined; rescue operations are underway.
The Surabaya Search and Rescue Office (Basarnas) is leading a large-scale emergency response. Local media reports suggest that most of the ferry has been engulfed in fire and people jumped into the water to save themselves. The Surabaya Search and Rescue Office said it first received notification of the fire at 8:24 a.m. from the Tanjung Perak Harbormaster's Office.
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"TB Hasnur 26 and the British Mentor are assisting in evacuating passengers who jumped from KMP Mutiara Sentosa 2. Four vessels are now alongside the ferry," said Nanang Sigit, head of the Surabaya Search and Rescue Office.
This is a developing issue; further details are awaited.
