Death toll from capsized Indonesian ship climbs as search widens for 107 missing

JAKARTA, Sept 23 — The death toll from a passenger ship that capsized and sank off ​Indonesia 10 days ago rose to 28 on Wednesday, officials said, with rescuers expecting to find more bodies as their underwater search widens.

The ‌Virgo Transport 8 ferry was carrying 243 people, including 30 crew and an unknown number of ⁠vehicles, when it capsized in ​bad weather early on September 13 ⁠during a voyage from Surabaya in East Java to Banjarmasin in South ‌Kalimantan.

Coast guard and Navy ‌personnel recovered 16 bodies from inside the ship over the ⁠past three days, with nine found on ⁠Wednesday. Two more bodies had washed ashore about 253 km (157 miles) from the location of the accident, head of National Rescue Agency Mohammad Syafii said.

As of Wednesday, the total confirmed death toll was 28, with 107 people still missing. There were 108 known survivors.

Search and rescue operations ‌have been extended until September 27. Authorities said ​efforts to right the ship were underway, but it remained capsized on Wednesday.

Wednesday's search focused on looking for more bodies in the ship's cabins, said I Putu Sudayana, head of the Banjarmasin rescue agency.

Divers broke the windows of the cabins on Tuesday but could not enter due to murky water and strong currents, making it impossible to retrieve ​bodies that had been spotted.

"Our underwater search is focused on the ship's hull. ‌That is where ‌we are ⁠concentrating because we have found many passengers trapped inside the cabins," he said.

After that, if possible, rescuers will shift the search to the vehicles on the ferry, but it could prove challenging, with many appearing to be piled ‌on top of each ​other.

"This poses risks to the diving team," ‌Putu said. "If it is ⁠feasible and ​safe, we will carry out the search."

(Reporting by Ananda Teresia; Editing by David Stanway, ​Martin Petty)

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