Rescue Efforts Intensify for 129 Missing After Indonesian Ferry Capsizes in Java Sea

BANJARMASIN, Indonesia — Indonesian authorities ramped up the search on Monday for 129 people missing after a ferry capsized in rough Java Sea weather on Sunday, a tragedy that has claimed at least six lives.

The Virgo Transport 8, with over 240 people aboard, sent a distress signal after listing in heavy seas where waves reached three meters (about ten feet) while en route from Surabaya, East Java, to Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan on Borneo.

Communications with the vessel were lost around 2 a.m. Sunday; roughly two hours later officials learned the ferry had capsized in the Masalembo waters of the Java Sea, approximately 148 kilometres (92 miles) from Banjarmasin.

Footage released by Indonesia’s National Search and Rescue Agency on Sunday depicted the overturned ferry bobbing in turbulent seas as helicopters conducted the search.

On Monday, 17 vessels and aircraft, carrying roughly 655 personnel from the military, police and other agencies, were dispatched for the operation, according to Mohammad Syafii, head of the National Search and Rescue Agency.

He added that specialized underwater teams and navy‑operated thermal drones were also being used to improve the search and accelerate victim recovery.

“We remain hopeful of locating additional survivors,” Syafii said during a video briefing.

With help from nearby tugboats and other passing vessels, search teams rescued 108 individuals and recovered six bodies on Sunday.

The vessel’s manifest listed 243 occupants—213 passengers and 30 crew—though passenger counts often diverge from manifests in Indonesia. The 119‑metre (390‑foot) ferry, built in Japan in 1987, was also carrying 89 vehicles.

The cause of the accident has not yet been established.

Survivor Ahmad Saudi reported that the ferry seemed overcrowded, forcing many passengers to sleep in hallways and common areas after the cabins filled.

Saudi, a bus driver who was transporting his own vehicle, recalled that the vessel listed abruptly without warning, sparking panic as rough seas battered the ferry in the Java Sea.

He said passengers first clung to the ship before scrambling to the higher side as it continued to tilt, speculating that the imbalance could have been caused by trucks loaded predominantly on one side.

“The women in the economy‑class cabins probably did not survive because the vessel listed so rapidly,” Saudi said, adding that no alarms or announcements were made, leaving many cabin occupants insufficient time to escape.

Faisal, another survivor known by a single name, said he and 14 other passengers clung to a part of the capsized ferry that stayed above water.

“After the vessel listed, people panicked and rushed to the upper deck, but the ferry eventually turned over completely,” he said. “Fourteen of us were left stranded there.”

While awaiting rescue, the group repeatedly recited the Islamic call to prayer (adhan) as they fought exhaustion and rough seas; a wave later pushed Faisal toward a lifeboat, which aided his survival, he said.

Indonesia, an archipelago of over 17,000 islands, relies heavily on ferries for transport, yet accidents happen frequently, partly because safety regulations are weakly enforced.

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