A Ro-Pax ferry operated by Indonesian state-owned entity ASDP caught fire while approaching Merak Port in Indonesia's Banten province in the afternoon (local time) of Tuesday, October 20.
The ferry Batumandi was completing a crossing of the Sunda Strait from Bakauheni Port in Lampung.
The operator said the ferry left Bakauheni at 14:52. The fire was reported at around 16:15 while the vessel was in Merak's approach channel.
The initial report to Merak vessel traffic service (VTS) gave the engine room as the location of the fire. Separately, the operator said shore personnel saw sparks at the stern, on the upper deck used to carry small vehicles, as the ferry approached Dermaga VI near Pulau Merak Besar.
All passengers and crew were safely evacuated.
A passenger identified as Heri said he noticed heavy smoke coming up from the vehicle-carrying lower deck. Many of the passengers then scrambled to grab lifejackets and evacuated into lifeboats.
Some people reportedly jumped overboard to avoid the flames, according to the Jakarta Globe.
At 16:56, the ferry Royce 1 reported to Merak VTS that it had taken aboard all passengers and crew from Batumandi.
ASDP Corporate Secretary Windy Andale said the operator recorded completion of the evacuation at 17:05. The evacuees were landed at Dermaga IV in Merak.
Yogie Nugraha, head of the Banten Port Authority, said there had been no reports of deaths. He added that the cause of the incident had not been determined and would require further examination by the competent authorities.
"There are injured people who have already been taken to nearby hospitals; whether there have been fatalities is not yet known because the count is still being carried out," said Rizky Dwianto of the Banten Search and Rescue Office.
Some passengers also received medical attention at the port.
Kompas TV later reported that six injured passengers have been taken to a community health centre for treatment.
The port authority said the tugs TB Gunung Cipala, TB Avatar Harbour, TB Teluk Jakarta, TB Tirtayasa V, TB Gunung Batur, and TB Gunung Santri supported the response. They were joined by the patrol vessel KNP 333, the customs boat BC 9006, and the ferries Royce 1, Munic 3 and SMS Mulawarman.
The ferry was still burning at 21:00, as crews worked to put out the fire.
Metro TV reported that the ferry had berthed at Merak and that personnel were carrying out a detailed count of 420 passengers and eight vehicles.
ASDP said it was coordinating with port authorities, national search and rescue agency Basarnas, and local police.
The operator has also temporarily moved passenger and vehicle embarkation and disembarkation from Dermaga VI Eksekutif to Dermaga Express 2 to maintain traffic on the crossing.
The Merak–Bakauheni route links Java with Sumatra. Annual traffic on it includes more than 20 million passengers and five million vehicles.
Merak was also the site of a prolonged fire in September 2023. On that occasion, the ferry Mutiara Berkah I caught fire during cargo operations, though all 139 people on board were safely evacuated.