Indonesia arrests captain of ferry that sank, killing dozens

Indonesian authorities have apprehended the captain of a passenger ferry that capsized in the Java Sea in September, resulting in dozens of fatalities, according to a police spokesman on Thursday. The detention occurred as the ongoing search operation had entered its third week, having recovered 108 survivors thus far. The vessel, carrying 213 passengers and 30 crew members, lost contact after departing from Surabaya, Indonesia's second-largest city on Java Island, bound for Banjarmasin on Borneo.

The exact number of fatalities has been confirmed at nearly 80, while dozens remain officially unaccounted for in the search efforts.

Marine accidents are an all-too-common occurrence in Indonesia, a sprawling Southeast Asian archipelago comprising over 17,000 islands that heavily depend on maritime transportation for daily commutes and tourism. The country's lax safety standards and unpredictable weather conditions frequently contribute to such incidents.