Rescue operations continued on August 3 to locate passengers missing from an Indonesian ferry that caught fire on the morning of August 2 while sailing from Surabaya in East Java to Makassar on Sulawesi island. The fire on the Mutiara Sentosa 2 ferry resulted in at least five confirmed deaths and multiple individuals unaccounted for more than 24 hours after the incident.

The vessel, Indonesia’s second-largest city’s main transport link to Sulawesi, was carrying passengers when the blaze erupted between 6 a.m. and 7 a.m., according to survivors and officials. Initial manifest records indicated 232 passengers and 39 crew members were on board, but this figure has been inconsistent, with some reports citing as many as 271 people aboard. Authorities have yet to reconcile the conflicting data.

Survivors recounted hearing several explosions shortly before the fire spread through the ship, which reportedly began at the stern. Muhammad Abdul Karim, a passenger who was rescued after drifting for around seven hours, said smoke initially entered the information room and sleeping quarters before the fire intensified. Passengers fled toward the bow, where they received life jackets, and many then jumped into the sea as the flames approached.

“The waves were big and the ship coming to save us was quite far,” Muhammad said, describing the difficult conditions faced by those abandoning ship. Rescuers found 229 people alive and recovered five bodies as of August 3, with the number of missing individuals remaining unclear due to discrepancies in the passenger list and ongoing verification efforts. An East Java police official reported that around 28 people might still be missing, but this figure has varied in different statements.

Another survivor, Bambang Susilo, described the worsening fire conditions near the bow and his decision to jump into the sea with a female passenger. He and several others managed to swim roughly 5 kilometers to a nearby rescue vessel. Most survivors were taken back to Surabaya, a journey that took about six hours by boat.

Indonesian authorities have dispatched additional rescue vessels to continue searching for missing passengers. The country’s archipelagic geography and history of maritime accidents—often linked to lax safety regulations and unpredictable weather conditions—underscore the challenges faced in responding to such disasters. A recent incident in July saw a ferry sink near Selayar island, leaving several dead and others unaccounted for.

Officials continue to rely on family reports and passenger manifests to confirm the number of people onboard and missing, as the search and rescue operation remains active.