Indonesian Ferry Catches Fire Mid-Voyage: 3 Passengers Dead, 568 Rescued

An Indonesian passenger ferry caught fire at sea on Sunday (July 20), resulting in 3 deaths and 568 people being rescued. Photos and videos circulating on social media showed terrified passengers wearing life jackets jumping into the sea, while orange flames engulfed the vessel and thick smoke billowed.

The incident occurred around noon as the ferry was heading to Manado, the capital of North Sulawesi Province. Manado Naval Base commander, Admiral Sihombing, stated that the ferry, named KM Barcelona 5, suddenly caught fire during its voyage.

This vessel had departed from Melonguane Port in the Talaud Islands region of North Sulawesi Province and the journey was expected to take half a day. Sihombing said the rescue operation deployed a coast guard ship, six rescue boats, and several inflatable boats. Crew members rescued multiple passengers from the sea and took them to nearby islands, while local fishermen also saved some survivors who were drifting in the rough sea wearing life jackets.

Search and rescue operations continued on Monday (July 21), but as of now, there are no reports of missing persons. Authorities had previously reported 5 deaths, but the National Search and Rescue Agency revised the death toll to 3 early Monday morning, after two initially reported deceased passengers were rescued in hospital, including a two-month-old baby whose lungs were filled with seawater.

The ferry fire was put out within an hour. The initial passenger manifest recorded only 280 passengers and 15 crew members on board; however, the national rescue agency confirmed that 568 survivors were rescued and 3 bodies were found, among them a pregnant woman.

In Indonesia, discrepancies between the number of passengers on board vessels or ferries and the official passenger manifest are very common. The ferry had a capacity for 600 people.