ع
Indonesia’s search and rescue agency reported that the Virgo Transport 8 ferry carrying 243 passengers and crew overturned in the Java Sea after encountering severe weather on its route from Surabaya in East Java to Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan. Local search and rescue chief I Putu Sudayana said teams had evacuated 103 people by Sunday afternoon including one passenger who subsequently died. The agency has deployed multiple vessels a helicopter and issued alerts to nearby ships to expand the search for those still missing according to officials coordinating from Banjarmasin.
The vessel lost contact with its operator early on Sunday after the captain reported that it was tilting Sudayana told reporters. It had left Surabaya on Saturday morning and its last known position was around 150 kilometres from the destination port when communication failed. High waves measuring up to 2.5 metres created dangerous conditions that complicated access to the scene as the search and rescue office noted in its updates.
Sudayana described the maritime environment as extremely hazardous for all involved vessels. “It is extremely risky for vessels. Even our Basarnas vessel which is 40 metres long is at great risk” he said referring to the national agency. The search operation has involved coordination with maritime authorities and continuous monitoring of weather patterns that have hampered progress since the incident unfolded.
The ferry was a Japanese-built vessel equipped to transport both passengers and vehicles on regular inter-island services according to its operator PT Virgo Yoel Rihi. The company’s notification of the communication failure reached authorities about two hours after the last position report. Officials have cautioned that passenger manifests listing 213 travellers and 30 crew members often vary from actual numbers on such voyages in Indonesia.
Basarnas figures released to a parliamentary commission show 601 ship accidents occurred from January to mid-August 2026 resulting in 3 607 victims of whom 3 165 were rescued while 239 died and 203 remain missing. The Komite Nasional Keselamatan Transportasi conducted eight marine accident investigations throughout 2025 according to its performance report with seven classified as very serious marine casualties. A ferry fire in the Lombok Strait last month left one person dead and five missing even after 211 were rescued according to multiple accounts while a speedboat carrying journalists disappeared earlier this week near the Anak Krakatoa eruption.
Rescue teams had recovered one body while 140 people remained unaccounted for as of Sunday afternoon Al Jazeera reported. Sudayana emphasised that all available personnel and equipment were mobilised given the scale of the passenger list. The national search and rescue agency continues to lead efforts in the Java Sea with support from additional government bodies monitoring the situation.
