S

ri Wahyuni, 25, the mother of 20-day-old Davi, appeared happy as she arrived at the Sekupang ferry terminal in Batam on Tuesday.

She and her baby survived the KM Dumai Express ferry accident off Karimun, Riau Islands, on Nov. 22, after three hours in the open sea on a lifeboat.

"Davi remained in my arms when the boat sank after being hit by huge waves. Everyone on the ferry was in a panic but my son remained in my arms. We were eventually able to get on board a lifeboat and we drifted at sea for three hours until rescue arrived," said Yuni, adding that she would add the word samudera (ocean) to Davi's name.

Their arrival at the port received a lot of attention from members of the public who crowded the Sekupang Port. Yuni and Davi were kissed and hugged by housewives at the port when they learned the baby had survived the accident.

Another young survivor, six-week-old Rafi Maulana, also received kisses and hugs. His father Yahya was in a state of shock after losing his wife Sunarti in the accident. They survived the ordeal after Rafi and Yahya were able to get on a lifeboat.

The process of sending survivors and the deceased home began Tuesday and is centered at the Karimun regent's residence. The Riau Islands social office recorded a total of 255 survivors, of whom 103 have been sent to Batam and 106 to Dumai, while of the recovered bodies, five have been returned to Batam, with 14 sent to Dumai. Five remaining bodies are currently awaiting identification at the Karimun General Hospital.

The bodies of two other deceased passengers, Batam municipal official Bram Jatmiko and Boheng, the owner of PT Lestari Indomas Bahari, operator of the ill-fated KM Dumai Express ferry, have been returned to their families for burial.

As many as 46 other survivors are still being accommodated at the Karimun regent's residence because they are still suffering trauma and waiting to be brought home by their relatives.

Authorities at the Tanjung Balai Karimun naval base who had led the search efforts said search and rescue missions would be carried out until Nov. 29. Based on statements from relatives, the number of missing passengers stood at 21.

The incident, which occurred close to Singapore, has prompted sympathy from the Singaporean Navy which has offered to assist in search and rescue missions, but the request was turned down by Indonesian authorities. "The Singaporean Navy wished to deploy a patrol boat to help search for missing passengers, but we have yet to give permission because our resources are adequate to carry out the mission," naval base commander Let. Col. Edwin said.

Currently, 14 patrol boats from the Indonesian Navy, the customs office, the water police directorate and maritime safety coordinating agency (Bakorkamla) are involved in search and rescue missions around Riau Islands.

The head of the Riau Islands branch of state insurance company Jasa Raharja, Eri Martajaya, said families of the 27 dead passengers would receive an insurance payout of Rp 25 million (US$2,650) each, while 18 of the injured survivors would receive Rp 10 million each.