DEATH TOLL OF FERRY SINKING IN RIAU ISLAND REACHES 30

Tanjungpinang, Nov 22 (ANTARA) - The number of people found dead after "Dumai Express 10" sank off Tokong Hiu, Karimun district, Riau Islands province, Sunday, rose to 30.

Chief of the Operation Section of the Tanjungpinang Search and Rescue Team, Budi Cahyadi said here on Sunday evening that up to 8.30 pm local time, 30 people were found dead in the sea accident, while only 25 fatalities were reported at 20.10 pm.

The number of survivors evacuated by a joint team, consisting rescue workers from the local naval base, security guards and water police personnel of Tanjungpinang, also rose from 243 people earlier reported to 249, he said.

He said that the joint team was still searching for more victims around the locations of the sunken ship.

"Up to now, the joint team is still searching for more survivors as well as dead bodies around the location where Duma Express 10 went down," ujarnya.

The ill-fated ferry was sailing on the Batam-Bengkalis-Dumai route when it sank in the Karimun waters.
Cahyadi said that based on information from the ill-fated ship's agent, Dumai Express was carrying a total of 253 people on board, comprising 213 adult passengers, 25 children and 15 crew members.

However, with the evacuation of 249 survivors and 25 dead victims, the total number of people on board the ill-fated ferry might at least be 279, he said.

The cause of the accident is still unknown. But Basri Muhammad, a former sailor, believed that the vessel sank after big waves hit it. The waves in Karimun waters at that time were believed to reach up to six meters high.