One dead, 102 rescued from ferry off Java

INDONESIA/ BANJARMASIN:

One person was killed and more than 100 were rescued on Sunday after a ferry sailing between the Indonesian islands of Java and Borneo was hit by bad weather, rescue officials said.

The Virgo Transport 8, carrying 243 passengers and crew, had lost contact with its shipping company early on Sunday after departing from Surabaya in East Java.

"We can inform you that the total number of evacuated passengers is 103 people," local search and rescue chief I Putu Sudayana said.

One of the passengers had died, he told reporters in the port city of Banjarmasin, where the vessel was headed.

Rescuers battled waves of up to 2.5 metres (8.2 feet) to reach the ferry, he added.

"It is extremely risky for vessels. Even our Basarnas vessel, which is 40 metres long, is at great risk," he said, referring to Indonesia's Search and Rescue Agency.