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View all search resultsFerry fire raises concerns over lax national maritime safety oversight
The KMP Mutiara Sentosa II fire occurred only a month after a ferry carrying more than 70 passengers sank while sailing near Selayar, a small island off South Sulawesi.
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Plumes of smoke rise from the Mutiara Sentosa II, a ferry which caught fire on Aug. 2 off Madura Island in East Java province. (Reuters/Stringer)
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oncerns are mounting over safety oversight in Indonesia’s maritime sector after a passenger ferry caught fire off the coast of Madura, East Java, killing at least five people and leaving two others missing.
The KMP Mutiara Sentosa II, which operates a route between Surabaya, East Java, and Makassar, South Sulawesi, caught fire at around 6 a.m. on Sunday. The vessel was carrying 236 passengers, mostly logistics truck drivers, along with 39 crew members.
Udin Karo Karo, chairman of the Makassar–Surabaya Truck Drivers Association, criticized the vessel’s emergency response procedures, alleging that passengers were left to evacuate themselves during the blaze.
“Crew members failed to guide passengers during the fire. Around 40 percent of drivers aboard the vessel saved themselves. This is far from what is required under existing regulations,” Udin said on Monday.
He said many passengers were also forced to jump into the sea from the 160-meter-long, 25-m-wide vessel while relying only on life jackets, as no lifeboats or inflatable rescue rafts were visible during the evacuation.
Udin called on port authorities and maritime regulators to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the vessel’s operational readiness and safety compliance. He also urged authorities to ensure accountability and provide compensation for victims.
“We ask the authorities to investigate the cause of this incident, including whether negligence or other factors were involved. There must be accountability and compensation for the victims,” he said.
