Indonesia races to find missing ferry from Surabaya carrying over 200 passengers in Java Sea

For illustration only. An Indonesian shipping company lost contact with its ferry carrying 243 passengers and crew aboard in the Java Sea while sailing from Surabaya to Borneo during stormy weather on September 13, 2026. — AFP pic

First Published: Sunday, 13 Sep 2026 1:22 PM MYT

JAKARTA, Sept 13 — An Indonesian ferry carrying 243 passengers and crew is out of contact while sailing north in bad weather from Java to Borneo, rescue officials said Sunday.

The passenger and cargo ship Virgo Transport 8 departed from Surabaya, East Java, on Saturday before running into bad weather and losing contact with its shipping company early on Sunday.

“We have received the report regarding the loss of contact with the Virgo Transport 8 vessel and have immediately deployed personnel and KN SAR Laksmana 241 to the estimated last known position,” said I Putu Sudayana, head of the Banjarmasin Search and Rescue Office.

“Considering the relatively large number of passengers and crew on board, we are optimising coordination with all relevant elements to accelerate the search process and ensure the safety of all passengers and crew.”

Search and rescue operations were launched on Sunday morning, involving the navy, police and shipping company, Virgo.

The vessel’s last position was detected in the waters of the Java Sea, around 150 kilometres (90 miles) from its destination, Banjarmasin pier, Sudayana said.

Marine accidents are a regular occurrence in Indonesia — an archipelago of more than 17,000 islands that relies heavily on boat connections for daily transport and tourism.

Lax safety standards and unpredictable weather are the main reasons for the disasters.

On Monday, a speedboat carrying eight people, including five journalists working for local and international news agencies went missing near a volcano, Mount Anak Krakatau, in Banten province and a search is ongoing.

The journalists were sent to cover the volcano’s eruption that paralysed Jakarta’s main airport and several others.

Last month, a fire on board a ferry killed one person and left five others missing while 211 were rescued in the Lombok Strait off Indonesia’s Bali island.

The ferry had been heading from Bali to Lombok when it ran into trouble in the early hours of August 12.

In July, a ferry transporting more than 70 people sank while sailing near Selayar, a small island south of Sulawesi. — AFP