Indonesian rescuers have launched a search operation after a passenger ship carrying 241 people lost contact in the Java Sea while travelling from East Java to South Kalimantan on Borneo island.
The Search and Rescue Office in Banjarmasin said it received a report that the Virgo Transport 8 had suffered a communication failure while sailing from Surabaya, Indonesia’s second-largest city, to Banjarmasin.
Initial information placed the vessel’s last known position in the Java Sea, about 148 kilometres (92 miles) from a pier in Banjarmasin, the capital of South Kalimantan province.
The ship’s manifest showed that 241 passengers were on board.
There were no immediate reports of casualties as rescue authorities began efforts to locate the vessel.
Arianto Ardi, operations chief at Banjarmasin’s rescue agency, confirmed that contact with the ship had been lost and said rescue personnel had been deployed to the area.
“We have established an operations post at Trisakti,” Arianto said.
Authorities said the ship’s operator reported the incident after receiving information that the vessel had encountered bad weather.
The search operation remains ongoing as rescuers work to establish the vessel’s location and assess the condition of those on board.
