At least five people have died and another 41 are still being searched for this Sunday in Indonesia after a fire broke out on a ferry with more than 200 passengers in the middle of the sea in the East Java province, about 700 kilometers east of Jakarta, authorities from the archipelago have reported.
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Indonesia’s emergency services have explained that as of 16:00 local time (9:00 GMT) the aid teams deployed in the area, near the island of Madura, had confirmed the death of five people who were on board the Mutiara Sentosa 2 and the rescue of 225 others alive.
Additionally, in the same reports sent to journalists, the rescuers have estimated that 41 people have still not been found. The rescue operations have taken place while the flames continued to consume the huge vessel, as shown in images released by the country’s Ministry of Transportation.
In a press release, the government explained that the ship was sailing from the town of Surabaya to Makassar when the fire was detected, which spread through much of the vessel. Some people jumped into the water, according to videos published by the rescuers.
Several of these survivors managed to swim to the six ships that approached the disaster area, where they are still trying to rescue the rest of the passengers and crew, with the causes of the fire not yet clear.
So far, the passenger list of the Mutiara Sentosa 2 has not been published, which covered a route mostly used by Indonesians residing in East Java.
Maritime accidents are common in Indonesia due to poor infrastructure, passenger and cargo overloading, lax enforcement of safety regulations, and adverse weather conditions.
In July 2025, another ferry with 580 people on board caught fire in the North Sulawesi province, an incident that left three dead and caused dozens of passengers to jump into the sea to escape the flames.
The ship is one of the main means of transport in the Indonesian archipelago, made up of more than 17,000 islands and with a population of over 270 million inhabitants.
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