Indonesian passenger ship carrying 243 people reported missing after losing contact in Java Sea

An Indonesian passenger ship with 243 ​people on board went missing in the Java Sea early on Sunday (September 13) after losing ‌contact amid poor weather conditions, according to a statement from the country's search and rescue agency. Before losing contact, the Virgo Transport 8 ⁠ship began its journey on Saturday ​from the East Java city of ​Surabaya to the South Kalimantan city of Banjarmasin.

"At ​the time of this statement, ​the ship cannot be contacted, and its whereabouts ‌are ⁠unknown," the agency said, adding that rescuers have launched a search operation after deploying a team toward its last known position.

Authorities confirmed that it will take nearly five hours for the rescue team to reach the last known location of the ship in the Java Sea, recorded at nearly 02:00 local time on Sunday.

(This is a developing story. More details are awaited)