Passenger ship sinks in Indonesia, around 130 still missing

JAKARTA, Sept. 13 (Xinhua) -- A passenger ship that had lost contact in Indonesia's Java Sea has sunk, the country's National Search and Rescue Agency said Sunday, with around 130 people still unaccounted for.

Relatives of affected passengers look on as a National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) officer writes updates on a whiteboard amid ongoing rescue operations on the stricken Virgo Transport 8 ferry, at Trisakti Bandarmasih Port in Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan, on September 13, 2026. (Photo: AFP)

Around 110 people have been rescued and at least one person has died, according to the latest available figures.

The Chinese Consulate General in Surabaya confirmed to Xinhua that there were no Chinese nationals aboard the ship, citing information verified with relevant authorities of the Surabaya city government.

The passenger ship, Virgo Transport 8, was carrying 243 people when it lost contact at around 2:00 a.m. local time on Sunday after encountering bad weather, according to the search and rescue agency.

The vessel had departed from Surabaya in East Java province on Saturday and was heading to Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan province.

The cause of the accident remains unclear. Indonesian search and rescue authorities have deployed personnel, ships and a helicopter to waters near the vessel's last known position to conduct search and rescue operations.

Indonesia, an archipelagic country with around 17,000 islands, relies heavily on ferries and other forms of sea transportation to connect its islands and facilitate travel. Maritime accidents occur from time to time due to factors including weather conditions, sea conditions and vessel safety.