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even people, mostly children, have drowned and 13 others are feared missing after a fishing boat carrying 48 people reportedly sank in Sei Kubung waters in Labuhan Batu regency, North Sumatra, late on Wednesday.

As many as 28 passengers were rescued by fishermen.

Police said they were still investigating the cause of the incident. The boat was skippered by Koling, 47.

Labuhan Batu Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Ahmad Fauzi said police had questioned some of the survivors, including Koling.

Fauzi added that based on the preliminary examination, the boat sank at around 10 p.m. local time after it ran out of fuel. The passengers panicked when the vessel suddenly stopped in choppy waters.

'€œThe boat was dragged by the strong current until if hit something and capsized,'€ Fauzi said on
Thursday.

Fauzi said as of 2 p.m. on Thursday, those missing had not yet been found, while the bodies of the seven victims were found.

Police identified the victims as Putriani, 5; Juneri, 5; Farel, 3; Hanafi, 6; Ridwan, 7 months; Minah 1; and Maesaroh, 25.

Fauzi said the passengers were all related and were returning home from celebrating Idul Fitri with their relatives.

Meanwhile, a search and rescue (SAR) team continues to look for two missing passengers of a boat that capsized in Nabire waters, off Yaur isle, Nabire , Papua.

The two missing passengers were identified as Selvi and Linda, both civil servants in the Yamoor district, Kaimana, West Papua.

The accident occurred when a boat carrying seven people, including skipper Sergeant Said, was badly hit by huge waves while it was on its way from Kwatisore subdistrict to Nabire, on July 26.

The boat capsized and killed two persons including Sergeant Said of the Indonesian army. Their bodies were found on Monday. Three passengers survived and two others went missing.