Ferry engulfed in flames as tugboat and passing vessel rescued passengers gathered on the bridge and bow
Plumes of smoke rise from a Mutiara Sentosa 2 ferry which caught fire off Indonesia’s Madura island in East Java province, Indonesia, August 2, 2026. PHOTO: REUTERS
At least five people were killed and 41 were still missing on Sunday after a ferry caught fire off Indonesia’s Madura island, the country’s search and rescue agency said in a statement.
The ferry was carrying 271 passengers and crew members, 225 of whom have been rescued, agency data showed on Sunday afternoon.
The ferry was heading from Surabaya in East Java province to Makassar city in South Sulawesi.
According to Arab News, the ferry was almost completely engulfed in flames, with frightened passengers gathering on the bridge and bow as they awaited rescue. A tugboat and a passing vessel reached the scene shortly before 10 a.m. and began evacuating those on board, officials said.
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By Sunday afternoon, nearby vessels had rescued 225 passengers and crew members and recovered five bodies, while at least 41 people remained missing.
Authorities said the cause of the fire was not immediately known and remains under investigation.
Search and rescue teams dispatched a rescue ship from Surabaya, though officials said it would take about six hours to reach the site. A rigid inflatable boat launched from the Sumenep rescue post was forced to return because of rough seas and high waves. The Indonesian Navy also deployed a warship to support the operation.
The 160-metre-long, 25-metre-wide ferry operates on the Surabaya–Makassar route, a journey of about 40 hours that serves both domestic passengers and cargo traffic between Java and Sulawesi.
Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 17,000 islands, relies heavily on ferry transport. Maritime accidents are frequent, with poor safety enforcement often cited as a contributing factor.
