Rescuers search for over 100 people after Indonesian passenger ship sinks

Rescuers are searching for more than 100 people from an Indonesian passenger ship that sank in the Java Sea after 115 others were evacuated, one of whom has died, authorities said.

The Virgo Transport 8, with 243 people on board, lost contact with its operator in the early hours of Sunday, according to Indonesia’s search and rescue agency.

It had sailed from Surabaya on the Indonesian island of Java on Saturday and was heading for Banjarmasin, a port city on Borneo.

Rescuers are searching for the remaining passengers and crew.

The ship encountered rough weather, said I Putu Sudayana, head of the local search-and-rescue office in Banjarmasin.

The ferry’s last known position was in the Java Sea, about 81 nautical miles (equivalent to about 150km) from Banjarmasin, the AFP news agency reported.

Rescue ships and a helicopter have been searching the area, where Sudayana said waves as high as 2.5 metres (8.2ft) have hampered the operation.

“It is extremely risky for vessels. Even our Basarnas vessel, which is 40 metres (131ft) long, is at great risk,” Sudayana told reporters, referring to the country’s search-and-rescue agency.

Al Jazeera’s Jessica Washington, reporting from Indonesia’s capital, Jakarta, said authorities have yet to determine the cause of the sinking.

An investigation is under way, Washington added, with authorities examining factors including the weather and possible technical failures.

People in Indonesia, an archipelago of ‌17,000 islands, rely on ferries as a key mode of transport, with sea routes more affordable and readily available than ‌air ‌travel.

Last month, a fire on a ferry sailing between Bali and Lombok killed one person and left five missing. In July, a ferry carrying more than 70 people sank near Selayar Island, south of Sulawesi.