Rescue teams in Indonesia recovered three bodies from the capsized ferry Virgo Transport 8 on Friday, bringing the confirmed death toll to nine as search operations enter a critical phase, according to the Banjarmasin Naval Base. The vessel, which was carrying 243 people when it encountered rough seas and listed in the Java Sea, still has 126 people missing, according to officials.
Improved weather conditions on Friday allowed a specialized team of 17 divers to access the wreck of the Virgo Transport 8, according to Col. Galih Nurna Putra, commander of the Banjarmasin Naval Base. Descending about 29 meters (95 feet) to the seabed, divers broke a window to enter the vessel and recovered the bodies of two men and a woman. The bodies are scheduled for transfer to Banjarmasin.
Search and Salvage Operations in the Java Sea
The Virgo Transport 8 issued a distress call Sunday, reporting that the ship was listing in waves reaching 3 meters (10 feet) while traveling from Surabaya in East Java to Banjarmasin on Borneo island, according to disaster authorities. Officials lost contact with the vessel around 2 a.m. Sunday, and later learned it had overturned in the Masalembo waters of the Java Sea, about 148 kilometers (92 miles) from Banjarmasin.
Operations faced severe delays due to poor weather, including strong winds, high waves, and currents reaching 12.6 kph (7.8 mph), before divers and a navy special forces unit reached the site on Thursday. Yudhi Bramantyo, operations director at Indonesia’s National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas), stated that authorities have finalized plans and gathered necessary equipment to begin full salvage operations. The overturned ferry has drifted about 453 meters (1,486 feet) from its original sinking site, with its stern embedded in the seabed and its bow resting 5 to 6 meters below the surface. Authorities confirmed that no fuel leaks or oil pollution have been detected around the wreck.
Passenger Manifest Discrepancies and Identification Protocols
According to the ship’s manifest, the 119-meter (390-foot) ferry was transporting 213 passengers, 30 crew members, and 89 vehicles when it capsized. Officials note that passenger totals in maritime transport frequently differ from official manifest records in Indonesia. A total of 108 people have been rescued so far, according to Basarnas operations director Yudhi Bramantyo.
To accelerate the identification of victims recovered from the shipwreck, Indonesian authorities have initiated protocols to collect DNA samples from the families of missing passengers. The Virgo Transport 8, built in Japan in 1987 and operated there until last year, operated within an archipelago of more than 17,000 islands where ferry travel is common and maritime safety enforcement is often blamed for regular disasters.
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