Five dead, 41 missing after Indonesian ferry Mutiara Sentosa 2 catches fire off Madura

The incident

The Indonesian ferry Mutiara Sentosa 2 caught fire on Sunday morning while sailing from Surabaya, East Java, to Makassar, South Sulawesi. The vessel, operated by PT Atosim Lampung Pelayaran, was carrying 271 passengers and crew, according to the national search and rescue agency Basarnas. Flames broke out between 06:00 and 07:00 local time, and the captain reported the fire to the company before contact was lost. The ferry was near the northern tip of Madura island when it burned. Videos circulated on social media showed dozens of passengers in life jackets on the deck as thick black smoke poured from the ship.

Rescue operation

Basarnas said 225 people had been rescued by Sunday afternoon, while five bodies were recovered and 41 remained missing. Several passengers jumped into the water and were picked up by nearby boats. Four vessels were standing by but could not approach the ferry because it was carrying flammable materials. A large rescue team was dispatched from Surabaya, but the agency noted it faced a six-hour journey to the site. Search efforts were continuing into the evening, with the number of missing still at 41 as of the latest update.

Rescued225

Dead5

Missing41

Rescued

225 people

Dead

5 people

Missing

41 people

Data from the article text

Official response

Muhammad Masyhud, a senior official at the Ministry of Transportation, said initial reports indicated passengers were waiting to be evacuated onto boats in the vicinity.

“The safety of passengers and crew is our absolute priority. We are coordinating with various parties to ensure the evacuation procedure takes place quickly, safely and efficiently.”

The cause of the fire remains unclear. Basarnas confirmed that the operator reported the incident to the Surabaya search and rescue office about an hour after the fire started.

Maritime safety record

Maritime accidents are frequent in Indonesia, an archipelago of roughly 17,000 islands where safety standards are often lax and weather conditions can be treacherous. On July 15, a ferry carrying 76 people sank near Selayar island, south of Sulawesi, leaving at least four dead and fourteen missing. The Mutiara Sentosa 2 fire is the latest in a series of deadly ferry incidents in the country.