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Number missing in Indonesia ferry disaster jumps to nearly 180: police
SIMALUNGUN, Indonesia, June 20, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – Nearly 180 passengers are
missing after a ferry sank into the depths of a volcanic lake in Indonesia,
police said Wednesday, almost tripling initial estimates — but the search-
and-rescue agency cautioned it was still unclear how many people were aboard
the vessel when it capsized.
The wooden boat, which sank Monday on Sumatra’s Lake Toba, a popular
tourist destination, was thought to be operating illegally, with no manifest
or passenger tickets.
The situation has sparked confusion — and different estimates from
various agencies — about the number of people on board.
Indonesia’s disaster agency, separate to the search-and-rescue body,
originally said some 80 people were on the boat along with dozens of
motorcycles when it overturned and sank.
Police said in a statement Wednesday there were as many as 178 people
missing, which if confirmed would make it one of Indonesia’s worst maritime
disasters.
The estimates have been based on local people reporting missing relatives
who they believed could have been on the ship.
“But many people got on the boat without a ticket so it’s unclear how many
were on board,” Muhammad Syaugi, the head of the search-and-rescue agency,
told AFP.
So far, at least three bodies have been found and another 18 people
rescued, according to the local disaster agency, as the search turned to
recovering victims — including those still trapped inside the sunken boat.
The search-and-rescue agency said search operations would continue for at
least a week given the size of the enormous body of water, which fills the
crater of a supervolcano that is believed to have erupted tens of thousands
of years ago.
It is one of the deepest lakes in the world and covers some 1,145 square
kilometres (440 square miles).
– ‘We just want to see his body’ –
On Wednesday the size of the search was increased to around 400 personnel.
“We are looking to search an area as deep as 400 metres, but we haven’t
found anything yet because the area is very large,” Syaugi said.
Images from the scene Wednesday showed rescuers covering up the bloated
body of a woman who had washed ashore.
It was not clear if any foreigners were on board the ferry or what caused
the disaster.
“We’ll be here until they find my brother’s body,” said Nurhayati, who was
among the hundreds of grief-stricken locals waiting by the shore for news
about missing loved ones, and like many Indonesians goes by one name.
“We just want to see his body and take him with us.”
Survivor accounts said the boat started shaking as it struggled to
navigate strong winds and high waves about halfway into the 40-minute trip
from an island in the middle of the lake to shore.
Muslim-majority Indonesia has been celebrating the Islamic festival of Eid
since Friday and millions go on holiday during the festivities, with Lake
Toba a key destination.
The deadly disaster came days after more than a dozen people were killed
in an unrelated maritime accident that underscored Indonesia’s woeful boat
safety record.
BSS/AFP/MSY/1322 hrs