From BBC News · · 1m 40s
Ferry capsizes in Java Sea, 130 still missing
A packed overnight ferry to Banjarmasin met bad weather and turned over, leaving families waiting at the port for names.
In brief
A packed overnight ferry to Banjarmasin met bad weather and turned over, leaving families waiting at the port for names. Ferries hold Indonesia's 17,000 islands together, and 111 recorded accidents since 2020 show how thin the margin is when weather turns. Originally reported by BBC News.
Six dead, 130 missing
The Virgo Transport 8 capsized in the Java Sea after hitting bad weather. Six people have died, 107 were pulled from the water, and 130 are still unaccounted for.
An overnight run gone wrong
The ferry left Surabaya at 10:33 on Saturday for Banjarmasin. Contact was lost around 02:00 Sunday, about 150km south of its destination, and the distress call came at 04:10.
280 people searching
Ships and a helicopter are working the site under a joint task force of the search and rescue agency, navy and maritime police. Every vessel in the area has been told to report any sign of passengers.
Eight relatives, no news
Rusmilawati went to Trisakti Port asking after eight family members returning from visiting the tombs of Islamic scholars in Java. By Sunday afternoon officials had told her nothing.
“The waves are really frightening tonight.”
One survivor, one silence
Misnah wept on learning her husband Ahmad Supandi, a freight driver, had been picked up by the MV Haida. Fredy is still waiting on his youngest sibling Stevie, the ship's keyboard player.
“We spoke two days ago when the ship was docked in Surabaya. After that, there was no news until now.”
A pattern, not an accident
Government data records 111 ship accidents between 2020 and 2026. In July a boat sank off South Sulawesi with 14 still missing, and last month a ferry fire off Madura killed five.
Here's the gist
Ferries hold Indonesia's 17,000 islands together, and 111 recorded accidents since 2020 show how thin the margin is when weather turns.
