Most of the boats operating in waters of Jakarta’s Thousand Islands regency fail to meet safety standards set by the National Transportation Safety Commission (KNKT).

"Our recommendation issued last year has not been heeded until today," KNKT chairman Soerjanto Tjahjono told tempo.co on Tuesday.

His comment follows an incident on a vessel belonging to the Jakarta Transportation Agency. An explosion occurred aboard the boat on Sunday at 10:20 a.m., shortly after the engine had been turned on. The vessel was due to transport passengers to Pramuka Island.

Nine people were reportedly injured.

Police investigating the case are looking into possible negligence and have questioned 15 people so far.

Last year, 24 people were killed aboard the Zahro Express boat traveling from Muara Angke Port in North Jakarta to Tidung Island in Thousand Islands regency when a fire caused an explosion.

Soerjanto said he had urged boat owners to seriously consider safety standards after the fatal incident, but the suggestions had been largely ignored, as officials from his office still found many vessels that did not meet the safety standards.

He also lamented a lack of communication from crews regarding the location of their boats at sea, which would hamper rescue efforts in case of an emergency.

He added that crew members were often careless. "I often saw them smoking while refueling vessels. That's very dangerous," he said. (fac)