11 Missing After Cargo Ship Catches Fire Off Indonesia's Bengkulu

JAKARTA, Oct 17 (Bernama) -- Eleven crew members remain missing after a cargo ship caught fire off Bengkulu province on the western coast of Indonesia's Sumatra island on Friday night, while 13 others were rescued.

The National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) said the fire broke out in the engine room of KM Prima Sentosa at about 7 pm local time while the vessel was sailing from Muara Jawa in East Kalimantan to Nagan Raya in Aceh province, with 24 people on board.

“Thirteen crew members managed to escape on a life raft before being rescued by a passing vessel, Seroja 20, while the whereabouts of the remaining 11 were unknown,” it said in a statement.

The agency said it received a distress report from the ship's agent at 8 pm and dispatched a rescue team 15 minutes later to the incident site, about 30 nautical miles from Pulau Baai Port, with support from the Indonesian Navy, maritime police, port operator Pelindo and local fishermen.

Separately, in East Nusa Tenggara province, rescuers continued searching for a 23-year-old Indonesian diving guide who went missing after tourist boat KM Feronia capsized and sank near Tatawa Island in Labuan Bajo on Tuesday.

The vessel was carrying 30 people when it encountered strong currents, with 29 rescued and the missing woman, identified as Veronica Beatrix Jessica, still unaccounted for.

Basarnas said 132 personnel were involved in Friday's fourth-day search operation, which covered 45.29 nautical miles of surface waters and included underwater searches using divers and specialised equipment.

It said a remotely operated underwater vehicle was deployed to a depth of about 99 metres, while the Indonesian Navy used side-scan sonar to survey several locations, but the operations yielded no sign of the missing passenger.

“During the search operation at 11.21 am local time, the joint SAR team recovered a life jacket belonging to KM Feronia, which will be used to evaluate and guide subsequent search efforts,” it said.

-- BERNAMA