Five dead, 41 missing, after Indonesia ferry catches fire
Five people have been found dead and 41 are missing after an Indonesian ferry carrying at least 250 people caught fire while at sea, officials say.
A ferry carrying an estimated 250 people caught fire at sea near Madura island, resulting in five deaths and 41 people still unaccounted for, according to Indonesian officials. The incident occurred while the vessel was en route from Surabaya, the second-largest city in East Java, to Makassar in South Sulawesi. The ship's captain alerted authorities to the fire, and footage from local news outlets showed numerous individuals wearing life jackets on what appeared to be a lifeboat.
Additionally, images depicted people scaling down from the burning ferry, which was emitting flames and smoke from its top. The National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) reported that at 08:24 AM local time (02:24 GMT), they received information about the fire on board the KMP Mutiara Sentosa 2 passenger ship. Based on the shipping company's information, the fire was reported to have started between 06:00 and 07:00 AM (00:00 and 01:00 GMT).
Later, Basarnas confirmed that the ferry was almost entirely engulfed in flames as passengers clung to the ship's bridge and bow, awaiting rescue. Video footage also showed people jumping into the sea, with groups of individuals in life jackets gathering and lifebuoys being thrown to those before they were brought aboard a rescue ship.
Written by urgent.news from MyJoyOnline Ghana's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
