Rescuers search for over 100 people after Indonesian passenger ship sinks

Search and rescue are ongoing after Virgo Transport 8, with 243 people on board, lost contact with its operator.

Relatives of passengers of the Virgo Transport 8 ferry wait for updates as a search-and-rescue agency officer writes on a whiteboard in Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan, Indonesia, September 13, 2026 [INFUZ via AFP]

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.

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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.

载有 243 人的 Virgo Transport 8 号航班与运营商失去联系后，搜救工作仍在进行中。

2026年9月13日，在印度尼西亚南加里曼丹省班贾尔马辛，维尔戈运输8号渡轮乘客的亲属正在等待最新消息，一名搜救机构官员正在白板上书写。[INFUZ via AFP]

救援人员正在搜寻一艘在爪哇海沉没的印尼客轮上的 100 多名乘客，此前船上 115 人已被疏散，其中一人已经死亡，当局表示。

据印尼搜救机构称，载有 243 人的 Virgo Transport 8 号货轮于周日凌晨与运营商失去联系。

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该船于周六从印度尼西亚爪哇岛泗水启航，目的地是婆罗洲的港口城市班贾尔马辛。

救援人员正在搜寻其余乘客和机组人员。

班贾尔马辛当地搜救办公室负责人伊·普图·苏达亚纳表示，这艘船遭遇了恶劣天气。

据法新社报道，该渡轮最后一次被发现的位置在爪哇海，距离班贾尔马辛约 81 海里（约 150 公里）。

救援船只和直升机一直在该地区进行搜寻，苏达亚纳表示，高达 2.5 米（8.2 英尺）的海浪阻碍了救援行动。

“这对船只来说风险极大。即使是我们40米长的巴萨纳斯号船只也面临着巨大的风险，”苏达亚纳告诉记者，他指的是该国的搜救机构。

半岛电视台记者杰西卡·华盛顿从印尼首都雅加达报道称，当局尚未确定沉船原因。

华盛顿方面补充说，目前正在进行调查，当局正在调查包括天气和可能的技术故障在内的各种因素。

印度尼西亚是一个由 17,000 个岛屿组成的群岛国家，该国人民依靠渡轮作为主要的交通方式，因为海路比航空旅行更经济实惠且更容易获得。

上个月，一艘往返于巴厘岛和龙目岛之间的渡轮发生火灾，造成一人死亡，五人失踪。7月，一艘载有70多人的渡轮在苏拉威西岛以南的塞拉亚尔岛附近沉没。