After a ferry caught fire off the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, three people died and more than 500 others were saved, according to emergency officials.
After the fire broke out on Sunday, passengers jumped overboard the KM Barcelona 5 as it departed from Melonguane port in the Talaud Islands district and headed for Manado, North Sulawesi province’s capital, according to the Indonesian coastguard.
As orange flames and black smoke poured out of the burning vessel, according to photos and videos that were popular on social media. The passengers were pictured jumping into the water while wearing life jackets.
A coastguard vessel was seen spraying water on the ferry, which was producing black smoke, in a video released by the Manado rescue agency.
Authorities in Indonesia had previously reported five fatalities in the accident, but later revised the figure to three after two initially reported fatalities, including a baby who was two months old, had been saved in a hospital with seawater-filled lungs.
The national search and rescue organization announced in a statement on Monday that at least 568 people had been saved from the ferry.
The Manado navy base’s chief, Franky Pasuna Sihombing, reported to The Associated Press news agency that the rescue operation included a coastguard ship, six rescue vehicles, and several inflatable boats.
The fire is thought to have started on the upper deck, according to officials.
The joint rescue team has been conducting the search and rescue operation as of right now because the data is still being developed, Manado rescue agency head George Leo Mercy Randang told the AFP news agency on Monday. In the event that families want to report a missing relative, our post is still open 24 hours a day.
One survivor described the passenger deck becoming oozing with smoke.
After being evacuated to Manado port, Johan Rumewo reported to Kompas TV that “everyone started panicking.” I jumped into the water while grabbing a life jacket. Before being saved, I floated for about an hour.
Only 280 passengers and 15 members of the ferry’s crew were recorded on the log. According to local media reports, the ship could accommodate 600 passengers.
The Southeast Asian archipelago’s 17, 000 islands are regularly hit by marine accidents, in large part due to poor safety practices or bad weather.
At least 19 people died when a ferry sank off the popular resort island of Bali on Sunday, according to the fire, which occurred just weeks prior to the tragedy.
Source: Aljazeera
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