Rescuers to recover wreckage of sunken ferry near Bali

Asia News Network

6 days ago

July 15, 2025
JAKARTA – Authorities are working to raise from the seafloor the KMP Tunu Pratama Jaya ferry that sank on its way to Bali just before midnight on July 2, after the joint search and rescue team located the wreck of ship on the seabed of the Bali Strait.
The National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) would coordinate with port authorities and the Transportation Ministry regarding the next stage of victim evacuation and recovery of the shipwreck, the agency's operation deputy Rear Adm. Ribut Eko Suyatno said during a press briefing on Sunday.
The operation to recover the wreck had passed the administrative phase, marked by local seaport authorities informing operators about the plan.
Tanjung Perak Seaport in Surabaya, East Java, had also notified ships in Ketapang Seaport in Banyuwangi to avoid the last known position of the sunken ferry. After that, relevant agencies would dispatch technical teams to draft a plan to raise the shipwreck.
Ribut acknowledged that the operation to recover the wreck would meet several challenges, ranging from weather to the strong current in the strait.
'The surface current is faster than 0.8 [knot]. We tried to send divers under, but they were immediately swept by the current,' the Navy's rear admiral said during a press briefing on Sunday.
The Basarnas announced the plan to raise the sunken Tunu Pratama Jaya after search and rescue teams found the vessel during a monitoring operation on Saturday.
The wreck was located approximately 3.9 kilometers from the site of the accident by a drone operated by the Indonesian Navy's hydro-oceanographic support vessel KRI Spica.
The discovery came after four underwater search attempts, which were hindered by strong currents in the strait.
'We identified the vessel by its name and the lower structure, which matched that of KMP Tunu Pratama Jaya' Second Fleet Sea Combat Task Force (Guspurla) commander Cdre. Endra Hartono said on Sunday.
As of Sunday afternoon, 11 days since the sinking, the joint search and rescue team had confirmed 18 fatalities. The vessel sank roughly 30 minutes after leaving Ketapang Port bound for Bali.
According to the official manifest, 53 passengers and 12 crew members were on board, but authorities believe the actual number may be higher, as many victims were reportedly not listed. The ferry was also carrying 22 vehicles, including 14 freight trucks.
A preliminary investigation by the National Transportation Safety Committee (KNKT) found that the likely cause of the sinking was the crew's failure to close the engine room door before setting out to sea.
Investigators had questioned surviving crew and passengers and discovered that seawater first entered the ferry through an open engine room door located on the lower deck. The hatch to the engine room should have remained closed at all times while the ship was sailing.
'We are still investigating whether the vessel was overloaded at the time of the accident,' said Anggiat Pandiangan, acting head of the KNKT Maritime Safety Subcommittee last week.
He added that the investigation is ongoing to determine the exact cause of the sinking.
The incident has reignited public calls for stricter safety regulations for vessels in the country, which has one of the world's poorest maritime safety records.
According to the Allianz Safety and Shipping Review 2025, archipelagic Indonesia ranks among countries with the highest number of ship losses globally.