Indonesia searches for dozens missing after passenger ship capsizes in Java Sea

Indonesian rescuers are conducting a search for 140 passengers from a passenger vessel that went missing in the Java Sea overnight. The ship, identified as Virgo Transport 8, was carrying approximately 243 people when it lost contact with its operator early on Sunday.

The ferry departed Surabaya in East Java at 10:13 a.m. on Saturday, bound for Banjarmasin on the island of Borneo in South Kalimantan. At about 2 a.m. local time on Sunday, the vessel’s operator, PT Virgo Yoel Rihi, reported that it had lost contact with the ship, which was then believed to have encountered bad weather.

Following the loss of contact, a rescue ship and a helicopter were dispatched to the vessel’s last‑known position, roughly 148 kilometres from a pier in Banjarmasin. The Search and Rescue Office in Banjarmasin confirmed that the operator had notified authorities after receiving information about the adverse weather conditions.

Authorities have confirmed one death and have evacuated either 102 or 103 people from the vessel, depending on the report. The evacuated passengers were transferred to various ships, with some expected to be taken to a port in East Java. The discrepancy in the number of evacuees reflects differing figures in the available reports.

Search operations continue as rescuers work to locate the remaining 140 passengers who are still unaccounted for. The effort focuses on the area around the ship’s last‑known coordinates in the Java Sea, with additional resources being mobilised as needed.