Ferry catches fire off South Sumatra, Indonesia; all on board rescued

Gunsa 8 in 2020 (Photo: MarineTraffic.com/Rafid Yhuan)

A Ro-Pax ferry with 86 people on board caught fire near Palembang in Indonesia’s South Sumatra province on Monday, July 12.

The 67-metre Gunsa 8 was sailing through the Bangka Strait from Tanjung Kalian Port in the Bangka Belitung Islands to Palembang when a blaze ignited in its engine room in the late afternoon (local time) of Monday.

Another passenger vessel that was sailing through the same area at the time immediately diverted to render assistance to Gunsa 8. The crew of the responding vessel safely took aboard all occupants who were on the burning ferry.

The crew of a civilian tug that had also arrived at the scene conducted firefighting operations while the rescue was underway.

An emergency response official said the fire was extinguished within hours.

Investigators are now working to identify the cause of the fire and the extent of the resulting damage.


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