At least 43 missing after ferry sinks in Indonesia
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Indonesia was shaken by the news of a ferry sinking and rendering at least 43 people missing.
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Ferries sinking in Indonesia are not uncommon in the nation comprised of more than 17,000 islands.
An Indonesian ferry sank off the coast of South Sulawesi province. 17 people have been rescued, and 43 have gone missing, Indonesian news agency ANTARA reported on Saturday.
The KM Ladang Pratiwi ferry, presumably carrying 60 passengers and cargo on board, departed on Wednesday from the port of the capital of South Sulawesi, Makassar, to one of the nearby islands.
The ferry sent a distress call on Thursday, but the rescuers managed to reach the shipwreck area only on Friday, managing to find and save 17 people, the agency reported.
The search and rescue operation continues all day on Saturday, the agency added, noting that there was no information on about 43 people so far.
According to other news outlets, including Kompas and Tempo, there could be nearly 50 people on the ship, with 26 still missing.
Shipwrecks are common in Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 17,000 islands, where ferries are a popular mode of transport. In 2018, more than 150 people drowned when a ferry sank in Lake Toba on the Sumatra island.
