Indonesia ferry sinking: Divers recover 52 bodies, search for missing 83 continues

Navy personnel maneuvering their boats directly above the passenger ship Virgo Transport 8 which capsized in the Java Sea waters, September 14. Pic/AFP

Divers in Indonesia have recovered a total of 52 bodies in a dayslong operation that followed the capsizing of a ferry in rough seas earlier this month, officials said Friday. Authorities had rescued 108 people, but 83 people remain missing.

The Virgo Transport 8 ferry was en route from Surabaya in East Java to Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan on Borneo island with 243 people on board when it issued a distress call on Sept. 13, reporting the vessel was listing in rough seas, with waves reaching 3 meters (10 feet).

Authorities later learned the ferry had capsized in the waters of the Masalembo archipelago in the Java Sea.

During the search operation, divers recovered bodies of passengers after smashing ferry windows underwater to enter the ship. Indonesia's Search and Rescue Agency said all available resources were being deployed in the search operation.

"Our primary focus is to locate the missing victims and provide closure to their families," said Mohammad Syafii, head of Indonesia's National Search and Rescue Agency.
The agency is still planning to salvage the ferry and pull the wreckage from a depth of about 30 meters (98 feet).

The recovered bodies have been taken to the police hospital in the Borneo city of Banjarmasin for identification before being handed over to their families.

Indonesia is an archipelago of more than 17,000 islands where ferries are a common method of travel. Disasters occur regularly, with weak safety enforcement often blamed.