A passenger ship carrying 240 people vanished from contact in the Java Sea on Sunday local time, triggering an urgent search as Indonesian crews raced to locate the vessel.

The Virgo Transport 8 was traveling from Surabaya, East Java, to Banjarmasin on the island of Borneo when communications with the ship were lost,the Associated Press reported, citing Indonesia’s Banjarmasin Search and Rescue Office.

Authorities said the vessel was last tracked roughly 92 miles from a pier in Banjarmasin, the capital of South Kalimantan province.

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Search-and-rescue teams launched an operation after receiving a report that the ship had suffered a communications failure during the voyage, according to the AP.

Officials had not reported any deaths or injuries as of Sunday, and it was not immediately clear what caused the vessel to lose contact or whether weather conditions were affecting the search.

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The Virgo Transport 8 departed Surabaya, Indonesia’s second-largest city, before losing contact while crossing the Java Sea toward South Kalimantan.

The search remains underway.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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The ship had departed from Surabaya, East Java, and was en route to Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan, before encountering difficulties.","More than 100 others on board were evacuated from the Virgo ⁠Transport 8 ship, including one who died","2026-09-13T05:10:38","https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/sep/13/indonesian-rescue-crews-searching-for-140-people-after-ferry-hit-bad-weather","politics",{"_27":329,"_299":330,"_137":301,"_80":331,"_313":338,"_314":339,"_316":340},"5cb76e65fa93f6f2d0b528e2b425dcde933e892b1af934dd8a94b2c329983bfa","62353b1b40ed6300ab04dad5ceb0e079abc448b28cd9e8440ad1a863039cb334d843163c7a822ff4dafa2b0fbe690ed9875c1ebe85bfabe28e72b50f5e3870b6",[332,333,334,336,337],[244,322],[44,252],[306,335,39,308],"30023:c70c3496af43d505c85c2c54b4792401b1620ba0b7793cc8e68348d7f2a209da:cb3d56be-c8bf-4b7e-97de-3d532f540f65",[310,39],[140,338,39],"c70c3496af43d505c85c2c54b4792401b1620ba0b7793cc8e68348d7f2a209da","Indonesian rescue crews searching for 140 people after ferry hit bad weather\nMore than 100 others on board were evacuated from the Virgo ⁠Transport 8 ship, including one who died\n\n\nnostr:naddr1qvzqqqr4gupzp3cvxjt27s74qhy9ctz5k3ujgqd3vg96pdme8nywdq6g6le2yzw6qqjxxc3nvs6nvcn9943nscnx956xydm995unwer995ekgdfnxfnr2dpsvcmr255vj80 ",1789281534,"Indonesian rescuers were searching on Sunday for 140 people from a passenger ship that was earlier reported missing in the Java Sea after 103 others were evacuated, one of whom died, a search and rescue agency official said.\nA passenger ship carrying more than 240 people was reported missing after losing contact during bad weather in the Java Sea early on Sunday, the country’s search and rescue agency said.\nThe Virgo Transport 8 ship set sail on Saturday from the East Java city of Surabaya to the South Kalimantan city of Banjarmasin before losing contact.\nI Putu Sudayana, the head of the agency’s Banjarmasin office, said in a video statement that 103 people had been evacuated using different ships and some of them would be taken to an East Java port.\nRescuers launched a search, deploying a team, ships and a helicopter toward the passenger vessel’s last known position, he said, without stating what happened to the ship.\nThe search and rescue office in the city of Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan, which is located on Borneo island, said it received a report two hours after contact was lost with the Virgo Transport 8 at about 2am on Sunday.\n“The ship’s operator reported the incident to authorities after receiving information that the vessel had encountered bad weather,” Sudayana, who heads the search and rescue office, said in a video briefing.\nIndonesia, an archipelago of 17,000 islands, relies heavily on ferries as a key mode of transportation, with sea routes more affordable and readily available than air travel.\nHowever, safety standards are not always rigorously enforced, resulting in a relatively high accident rate.\nThis is a developing story",{"_281":239,"_282":343,"_284":344},"d4be636a-4d7c-4523-9326-1ae9a0470140",{"_27":343,"_40":345,"_287":346,"_42":347,"_251":348,"_291":-5,"_29":292,"_293":349,"_295":350,"_244":327,"_80":-5,"_82":120,"_238":351,"_281":239,"_318":364},"Search underway after Indonesian passenger ship carrying more than 240 people loses contact","Indonesian rescuers are searching for the Virgo Transport 8, a passenger ship carrying 241 people, which lost contact in the Java Sea. The ship's operator reported the incident after the vessel encountered bad weather while traveling from East Java to South Kalimantan province. A rescue team and ship have been dispatched to the ship's estimated last known position.","Indonesian rescuers launched a search operation Sunday local time after authorities lost contact with a passenger ship carrying more than 240 people in the Java Sea while traveling from East Java to South Kalimantan province, officials said.","https://assets2.cbsnewsstatic.com/hub/i/r/2026/01/28/b456d006-f687-4a6f-b78f-99abb0ddb773/thumbnail/1200x630/1f446d1ab5dfd66000d7ffa0e0fc2812/gettyimages-2092399035.jpg","2026-09-13T03:56:21","https://www.cbsnews.com/news/indonesian-passenger-ship-missing-search-underway/",{"_27":352,"_299":353,"_137":301,"_80":354,"_313":361,"_314":362,"_316":363},"b5226db0bf78ac9fbafc0b6212e3846a2ad0cab233baec925c610eb5f4d2d751","048468d946e30dda732a474e93c5e1897683032a116424f99dadee0ada220b7282ced25781482128eb32829a4fc94ffaca4dd3f609c124f858f1d03a5069a46c",[355,356,357,359,360],[244,345],[44,348],[306,358,39,308],"30023:6759f7a309cd07f7abfe0c57ab4e0ff30ffcd68d9c744d403f22e2428df23738:d4be636a-4d7c-4523-9326-1ae9a0470140",[310,39],[140,361,39],"6759f7a309cd07f7abfe0c57ab4e0ff30ffcd68d9c744d403f22e2428df23738","Search underway after Indonesian passenger ship carrying more than 240 people loses contact\nIndonesian rescuers launched a search operation Sunday local time after authorities lost contact with a passenger ship carrying more than 240 people in the Java Sea while traveling from East Java to South Kalimantan province, officials said.\n\n\nnostr:naddr1qvzqqqr4gupzqe6e773snng8774lurzh4d8qluc0lntgm8r5f4qr7ghzg2xlydecqqjxgdrzv5mrxdnp956xgdmr956r2v3n95unxv3k95ckzefevycrgdesxy6rqsvv6zl ",1789281591,"Indonesian rescuers launched a search operation Sunday local time after authorities lost contact with a passenger ship carrying more than 240 people in the Java Sea while traveling from East Java to South Kalimantan province, officials said.\nThe Search and Rescue Office in the city of Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan, which is located on Borneo island, said it received a report two hours after contact was lost with the Virgo Transport 8 at about 2 a.m. Sunday. The ship had departed from Surabaya, Indonesia's second largest city in East Java province, en route to Banjarmasin.\n\"The ship's operator reported the incident to authorities after receiving information that the vessel had encountered bad weather,\" said I Putu Sudayana, who heads the Search and Rescue Office, in a video briefing.\nInitial information indicated the vessel's last known position was in the Java Sea, about 92 miles from a pier in Banjarmasin. The ship's manifest said it was carrying 241 passengers.\nThere were no immediate reports of casualties.\nThe vessel's operator, PT Virgo Yoel Rihi, reported the loss of contact and said the ship departed Surabaya on Saturday at 10:13 a.m. local time.\nIn response, a rescue team was dispatched to Banjarmasin's Basirih Search and Rescue pier, and a rescue ship was headed to the Virgo Transport 8's estimated last known position.\nSudayana, who is coordinating the search, said authorities were mobilizing all available personnel and assets because the vessel was carrying a large number of passengers and crew.\nHe said the agency was coordinating with maritime authorities and other relevant agencies in the search, while closely monitoring weather conditions in the area.",[],"selectedArticleImage","rootArticleImageUrl","consensusHtml","tweets",[],"userSchema","perspectivesColumns","intro","relatedArticles",[321,285,344],"actionData","errors"]

Indonesian Passenger Ship Loses Contact in Java Sea

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