Survivors of Indonesia boat sinking rescued after days at sea

JAKARTA, Indonesia: Five survivors from a passenger boat that sank off eastern Indonesia, including a seven-year-old girl, have been rescued after floating at sea for three days, a rescue official said on Sunday.

The vessel, which was carrying more than 70 people, sank on Wednesday as it sailed near Selayar, a small island south of the larger Sulawesi.

Survivors told rescuers they had been part of a group of 25 people earlier reported as missing before becoming separated from the others by heavy winds.

“After the ship sank, each of them saved themselves using whatever equipment or makeshift flotation they could find,” local search-and-rescue official Muhammad Arif Anwar told AFP.

“They rigged together jerry cans and pieces of cork tied up with rope, then climbed on top of them.”

The group was rescued on Saturday afternoon by local fishermen, who radioed officials for help, he said.

The survivors appeared tired and weak after floating for days without enough food or water, Arif said, but had been able to sustain themselves with packets of instant noodles and biscuits.

Five large ships, a reconnaissance aircraft and a helicopter are being used in ongoing search efforts for those still missing, he said.

Rescuers said the vessel listed only 50 people on board, but further verification found there were 78 on the ship.

It is common in Indonesia for the number of actual passengers on a boat to differ from the manifest. Accidents are a regular occurrence, due in part to lax safety standards and inclement weather.

Three Spanish tourists died when their boat sank off eastern Indonesia in January. A 10-year-old boy was listed as officially missing after authorities ended the search.