Tawau-bound students among dead, missing in boat capsize

TAWAU: At least eight people died and several others remain missing after a passenger boat capsized off the coast of eastern Sabah on New Year day, including two sisters who were on the way here to further their studies.

The ferry, Anugrah Express, was carrying some 45 people when it sank just minutes after leaving Tanjung Selor in Kabupaten Bulungan, Provinsi Kalimantan Utara, Indonesia, said Gusti Anwar Mulyadi a senior official of the local search and rescue agency.

Some 33 people have so far been rescued and navy personnel have been dispatched to search for the remaining passengers, but he said high waves are impeding operations.

“We don’t know yet what has caused the accident and how exactly it happened. But we’ll try to figure that out and are now focusing on finding the remaining passengers,” Mulyadi told AFP.

Felisia, 18, and Natasia, 16, from Kabupaten Berau were scheduled to fly from Tarakan to Tawau on the same day of the incident to pursue their studies at the Sabah Chinese High School (SCHS) and Institute of Science and Management here.

The principal of SCHS was believed to have informed the school board of directors and advisors of the incident.

The Indonesian Consulate in Tawau, when contacted, could not comment further on the incident as it was not handled by them.

A spokesperson of the consulate said that they have the relevant information about the incident from Tarakan, except for the full names of the victims.

This is the latest boat accident in the vast Indonesian archipelago. Last July, eight people drowned in a boat accident on the same route from Tarakan to Tanjung Selor.

On New Year’s day last year at least 23 people died when a tourist boat from Jakarta burst into flames. It was carrying about 250 local holidaymakers to celebrate the New Year on Tidung Island.