Death toll from Indonesia ferry sinking jumps to 64

The death toll from a ferry sinking in Indonesia's Java Sea has risen to 64, according to a national official on Saturday. Rescuers are still searching for 71 people missing, with 172 survivors recovered from the Virgo Transport 8. The vessel was carrying 213 passengers and 30 crew members when it lost contact with its shipping company after departing from Surabaya, Indonesia's second-largest city on Java island, heading towards Banjarmasin on Borneo.

Four bodies were recovered from the submerged ship on Saturday, while seven others were found along the shoreline. The search operation will be extended for an additional seven days but will be reassessed every three days. Search-and-rescue operations typically last seven days in Indonesia, and authorities can extend them based on factors such as an assessment that some victims might still be recoverable.

Maritime accidents are common in Indonesia, a vast Southeast Asian archipelago of over 17,000 islands that heavily relies on boat connections for daily transportation and tourism.

Lax safety standards and unpredictable weather are often cited as primary reasons for these disasters. Indonesia reported six fatalities and 130 missing after another ferry capsized off Java, with 107 people rescued. Recently, a ferry fire in the Philippines left 35 dead, with 54 people still unaccounted for.