15 people have died and 19 are missing. A ferry sank in Sulawesi, Indonesia | Search and Rescue | Indonesia | Passengers | Personnel | Accident | Rescue | Ferry
On July 23rd local time, a ferry sank on Sulawesi Island, Indonesia. Rescue operations are underway, with 15 passengers confirmed dead and 6 rescued. Rescue personnel are still searching for 19 others.
According to Al Jazeera on July 24th, a ferry sank on Sulawesi Island late at night local time. The ferry has a capacity of 40 passengers, but due to the fact that the actual number of passengers on board often cannot match the passenger list, the specific number of people on board the ferry at the time of the accident is not yet clear. The Indonesian authorities have confirmed that at least 15 people have died in this incident, 6 rescued passengers have been placed in local hospitals, and 19 passengers are still missing.
On July 24th, the head of the search and rescue agency, Mohammad Alafa, introduced that in this rescue operation, rescue personnel were divided into two groups and conducted searches and rescues both on the sea and underwater around the scene of the incident.
Indonesia, as the world's largest archipelago country, has over 17000 islands, and shipwreck accidents are not uncommon here. In 2018, a capsizing accident caused by overloading occurred on Lake Toba on Sumatra Island, resulting in the drowning of 192 people. Last May, a ferry carrying over 800 people ran aground in the province of East Nusa Tenggara, fortunately, no casualties were reported.