At least 61 people were missing after a ferry sank off the popular Indonesian resort island of Bali, a local search and rescue agency said Thursday, July 3. The vessel sank around 11:20 pm (3:20 pm GMT) on Wednesday in the Bali Strait as it sailed to the famous holiday destination from Indonesia's main island Java, Surabaya search and rescue agency said in a statement.
"The ferry's manifest data totalled 53 passengers and 12 passenger crews," the Java-based agency said, adding rescue efforts were still underway. "The ferry, which is estimated to have sunk at 23:20 local time, also contained 22 vehicles including 14 trucks," it said. The agency said in a later statement four people were rescued in the early hours of Thursday.
Marine accidents are a regular occurrence in Indonesia, a Southeast Asian archipelago of around 17,000 islands, in part due to lax safety standards. In March, a boat carrying 16 people capsized in rough waters off Bali, killing an Australian woman and injuring at least one other person. In 2018, more than 150 people drowned when a ferry sank in one of the world's deepest lakes on Sumatra island.