Kupang | Sun, 10/24/2010

Five people died and 17 were still missing on Saturday after a ferry capsized near Palue Island in Sikka regency, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) on Friday.

Maumere Naval Base commander Col. Suroso Hadiwibowo said Saturday that rescuers had plucked
44 people from the sea after the ferry KM Karya Terang, which was carrying at least 66 passengers, sank on Friday afternoon.

The ill-fated boat was swamped by big waves off Cape Watumana about an hour after it left Palue Island en route to the regency capital, Maumere, Hadiwibowo said.
“The total number of passengers who were on the the boat remains unclear, but according to unofficial information it was carrying more than 50 people when it capsized,” Hadiwibowo said as quoted by Antara news agency.
He said rescue workers, water police and local fishermen were still searching for the missing passengers on Saturday morning.

Provincial Search and Rescue Board head Herman da Gomes said that its search and rescue team found 44 survivors, 36 of whom were evacuated to Maumere and eight to Palue Island.

“Twenty-two others are still missing,” he said. “The second day of the search was not yet fruitful. The waves were still high.”

Ferry accidents in Indonesia have killed hundreds of people in recent years.
In December 2006, a crowded ferry broke apart and sank in the Java Sea during a violent storm, killing more than 400.

The vessels are often overcrowded and safety regulations are poorly enforced. Manifests are generally unreliable because tickets are sold onboard to passengers, who are never registered.