PALU, Indonesia — Rescuers in eastern Indonesia on Sunday found two more survivors, a mother and son, from a passenger boat that sank last week and were searching for 18 others still missing.
Fishermen found the 46-year-old woman and her 24-year-old son stranded on Balaloho Island, one of the small inhabited isles among the Selayar Islands, officials said.
More than 200 rescuers aboard vessels were joined over the weekend by Indonesian troops, police, fishermen and residents, said Andi Sultan, head of emergency response in Makassar, a port city on Indonesia’s Sulawesi island.
“Rescue teams also faced extremely harsh weather conditions, including waves as high as [6½ to 10 feet] and strong winds,” Sultan said.
A search-and-rescue team retrieved five survivors Saturday evening, including a 7-year-old girl, who were clinging to a fish trap.
At least one person has been confirmed dead.
The KM Nurul Salsa, which was carrying 78 passengers and crew members, experienced engine failure and sank Wednesday about 43 nautical miles from the port in the Selayar Islands, in South Sulawesi province.
Passenger boats are a common form of transportation in Indonesia, an archipelago with more than 17,000 islands. Lax safety standards and problems with overcrowding frequently result in accidents.
Taufan and Tarigan write for the Associated Press. AP writer Edna Tarigan in Jakarta, Indonesia, contributed to this report.
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