NEED TO KNOW
- A boat carrying 18 passengers capsized in Indonesia at 11:0 0 a.m. local time on Monday, July 14, according to reports
- 17 people have reportedly been rescued following the incident
- Authorities are continuing to search for the final passenger, per local media outlet Jakarta Globe
Several people have been rescued and one person remains missing after a speedboat capsized in Indonesia, according to reports.
At around 11:00 a.m. local time on Monday, July 14, a boat carrying 18 passengers sank after being hit by high waves due to severe weather in the Sipora Strait, off the Mentawai Islands in West Sumatra, ABC News and Indonesian outlet Jakarta Globe reported.
The passengers included 10 local government officials, two crew members, three children and four relatives, according to reports. The speedboat had departed the town of Sikakap and was heading to the town of Tuapejat, per ABC News.
Seventeeen people have been rescued as of Tuesday, July 15, according to Jakarta Globe. The survivors were found in stable conditions “across three locations” in Mappinang, Guluguluk, and Bulau villages of Indonesia, the outlet reported.
“We have located 17 survivors, and we have received encouraging information that the remaining person may have also survived,” Mentawai Search and Rescue Office chief Rudi told Jakarta Globe.
According to the outlet, the team is working to verify reports that the missing passenger has been found stranded in a local village. The passenger was identified as Guntur, an employee of the Mentawai public works department, per Jakarta Globe.
It was initially reported that at least 10 people were missing after the boat capsized on Monday. Indonesia’s Search and Rescue Agency (SAR) was notified of the incident six hours later at 5:40 p.m. local time and took 90 minutes to reach the area, per Jakarta Globe.
Eight people were reported to have been rescued on Monday, per The Independent. They were found after they swam ashore with life vests to Sikakap Village, Jakarta Globe reported, citing SAR officials.
“Some of the victims were seen floating on the surface, but the team couldn’t reach them in time, and they eventually disappeared from sight,” Dhio Ulwi Winanda, head of operations at SAR, told the outlet.
The survivors were reportedly evacuated in a KN SAR Ramawijaya vessel to the Indonesian town of Tuapeijat, where they received medical checks and identification.
“We will continue the search until we find the last victim,” Winanda told Jakarta Globe.
An investigation into the incident is ongoing.
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PEOPLE has contacted Indonesia’s National Disaster Management Authority and SAR for comment.
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