At least five people were killed and 41 remain missing after an Indonesian ferry caught fire at sea on Sunday, prompting a major search and rescue operation, authorities said.
According to the Surabaya Search and Rescue Agency, 225 people were rescued from the vessel, with some passengers jumping into the sea before being picked up by a nearby ship.
Indonesia’s National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) said the ferry caught fire while sailing from Surabaya in East Java to Makassar in South Sulawesi.
The ferry’s captain reportedly contacted the operating company to report the blaze but has since lost contact, the agency said.
Four vessels were deployed near the burning ferry but were unable to move closer because of the danger posed by flammable materials on board.
A larger rescue team was dispatched from Surabaya, with the journey to the disaster site expected to take around six hours.
“Based on preliminary reports from the field, passengers are waiting to be evacuated by the vessels in the vicinity of the incident site,” said Muhammad Masyhud, a senior official at Indonesia’s Ministry of Transportation.
“The safety of passengers and crew is our top priority. We are continuously coordinating with all relevant parties to ensure that the evacuation process can proceed quickly, safely and effectively,” he added.