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Search continues for Taiwanese man after boat capsized
Up to 100 people including divers were deployed on a search and rescue operation to find a Taiwanese national who went missing after a boat capsized in waters off Jakarta.
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A member of a group of specialist divers from the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) plunges into the waters of the Thousand Islands regency in North Jakarta, on March 12, 2024. Equipped with sonar equipment, the divers were dispatched to find a Taiwanese tourist who went missing after a boat with 35 people on board capsized in the area on March 11. (Antara/Bayu Pratama)
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uthorities deployed seven vessels and up to one hundred personnel, including a team of divers, as the search for a Taiwanese tourist resumed on Tuesday, one day after a boat with 35 people on board capsized off the coast of Jakarta while returning from an island resort.
The Jakarta office of the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) told reporters that a joint operation was still underway to recover a passenger who went missing after the boat KM Pari Kudus sank in waters near Rambut Island in Thousand Islands regency on Monday.
“On the second day of the search for the missing victim, we divided our team into three groups to conduct the search," mission coordinator Desiana Kartika Bahari said on Tuesday, as quoted by state news agency Antara.
A diving team equipped with underwater sonar devices was dispatched to conduct an underwater sweep at the coordinates where the boat capsized, while Desiana’s team kept watch on the water’s surface.
“We will deploy our personnel where sea conditions permit,” Desiana said in the nation’s capital.
Basarnas had hoped to complete the search and rescue operation by Tuesday afternoon.
“We’ll continue to do what we can,” she asserted.
Earlier that day, Agung Priambodo, head of operations at Basarnas Jakarta, said that seven vessels were deployed to aid in the search effort, including from Basarnas, the Indonesian Navy, the National Police and local fire and rescue squads. Additionally, a vessel from Asha Resort, which owns the capsized boat, was also involved.
He revealed that some 80 to 100 people from the different agencies were dispatched for the operation, which set out from the site of the incident toward the east and south.
“We’ve been actively searching since 7 a.m.,” Agung said.
Read also: Search ends for crew member missing off Sumatra‘In shock’
A Taiwanese national named Shi Yi was reported missing on Monday after a tourist boat capsized. It had left Asha Resort on Payung Island for Mutiara Beach, North Jakarta when the incident occurred.
Three crew members and 31 passengers had been evacuated. Another person, who did not appear on the initial passenger manifest, also survived.
Bad weather was believed to be the reason for the boat capsizing, said Thousand Islands Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Jarot Sungkowo.
“There are 10 foreign nationals and 22 Indonesians who were passengers on the vessel which capsized because of high waves and strong winds,” Jarot said, as quoted by Antara.
Among them were five Chinese citizens, four Taiwanese and one South Korean.
But while all other passengers and crew were accounted for, Shi Yi's disappearance was not discovered until after the crew recovered from the initial shock, Jarot said.
The search began on Monday afternoon but was called off temporarily because of bad weather, before continuing Tuesday morning with a larger deployment.
Basarnas reported no injuries or fatalities from the incident, although Agung said they were “in shock”.
The missing victim was last seen wearing a gray shirt, black pants and a black cap. “The victim is around 40 to 45 years old and is still missing,” Agung was quoted as saying.
