Indonesian authorities have extended the search for victims of the Virgo Transport 8 disaster as 125 people remain missing one week after the passenger ship capsized in the Java Sea.
Divers recovered another body from inside the vessel on Sunday, September 20, raising the confirmed death toll to 10.
Indonesia’s National Search and Rescue Agency, known as BASARNAS, said 108 people had survived.
Those figures account for all 243 people recorded aboard the vessel: 108 survivors, 10 confirmed fatalities and 125 passengers or crew members whose whereabouts remain unknown.
The ship was carrying 213 passengers and 30 crew members when it overturned early on September 13 during a journey from Surabaya in East Java to Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan.
The voyage was expected to take approximately 20 hours.
The captain reported that the ship was listing during rough conditions, with waves reaching approximately three metres, before contact was lost at around 2 a.m.
Authorities received confirmation about two hours later that the vessel had overturned in the Masalembo area of the Java Sea, approximately 148 kilometres from Banjarmasin.
Bad weather and rough seas are confirmed circumstances surrounding the disaster. The definitive cause has not yet been established by Indonesia’s transport investigators.
Questions requiring formal examination include the vessel’s stability, loading and distribution of vehicles, passenger numbers, emergency procedures, structural condition and the crew’s response before the capsize.
The ship was transporting 89 vehicles, according to the passenger and cargo information cited by the Associated Press.
Virgo Transport 8 was built in Japan in 1987 and measured approximately 119 metres.
Survivors have described a rapid and chaotic capsize.
One passenger told the Associated Press that the vessel appeared overcrowded, with some travellers sleeping in passageways and shared areas because cabins were full. He said the ship listed suddenly, leaving passengers little time to reach the upper deck.
Another survivor said he and 14 other people clung to a section of the overturned hull that remained above the water.
Those accounts provide important evidence about the experience aboard the ship but do not independently establish the mechanical or regulatory cause of the accident.
Passenger numbers recorded on manifests can also differ from the number of people actually aboard ferries in Indonesia. Authorities have nevertheless maintained the total of 243 while updating the survivor, fatality and missing-person figures.
Search teams initially concentrated on surface and aerial operations, supported by naval vessels, aircraft, nearby commercial ships and specialised underwater personnel.
Divers subsequently reached the wreck and began entering parts of the hull.
They recovered three bodies on Friday and one additional victim on Sunday.
Strong underwater currents hampered Sunday’s operation, according to BASARNAS official I Putu Sudayana.
Rescuers intend to deploy a remotely operated vehicle on Monday. The underwater machine is expected to help inspect the wreck, identify entry points and guide divers in conditions where visibility and current speed create substantial danger.
The ship lies overturned on the seabed at a reported depth of approximately 29 metres and has shifted several hundred metres from its original position.
Its internal arrangement presents additional difficulties. Vehicle decks, cabins, corridors, broken fittings and unsecured cargo can obstruct divers or create entanglement and collapse hazards.
Opening enclosed spaces can also alter water pressure or disturb any remaining air pockets.
Authorities have not reported credible signs that survivors remain inside the hull. Search officials have continued the operation while acknowledging that the likelihood of finding people alive declines sharply with time.
The rescue agency extended the operation for another week because of the number of people still missing and the time required to search and reposition the vessel.
A salvage operation intended to right the ship is also being prepared. Bringing the wreck upright could provide access to sections that divers cannot reach safely while it remains inverted.
The operation must balance the need to recover victims with the danger of shifting the ship, disturbing enclosed compartments or moving bodies and evidence.
President Prabowo Subianto has expressed condolences and said an investigation would be conducted. Indonesia’s National Transportation Safety Committee is expected to examine the disaster.
The inquiry will need to determine whether the vessel complied with stability, maintenance, passenger-capacity and cargo-securing requirements.
Indonesia depends heavily on ferries to connect thousands of inhabited islands. Maritime accidents remain recurrent, with enforcement of safety rules, passenger documentation, ageing vessels and unpredictable weather frequently identified as risks.
The current official figures should be described carefully.
The 125 people are missing or unaccounted for; they have not all been legally or physically confirmed dead.
The toll may change as divers enter more compartments, the ship is righted, passenger identities are reconciled and bodies are recovered.
Likewise, the statement that the vessel capsized during bad weather should not be converted into a definitive finding that weather alone caused the disaster.
The strongest verified conclusion is that Virgo Transport 8 overturned in rough Java Sea conditions with 243 people recorded aboard; 108 survived; 10 deaths have been confirmed; and 125 people remain missing.
The search is continuing with divers, a planned remotely operated vehicle and an extended recovery period.
