Captain blames freak storm for ferry sinking

Geoff Thompson, Indonesia correspondent and wires

Last Updated: Mon, 23 Nov 2009 17:47:00 +1100

The captain of an Indonesian ferry that sank, killing 29 people, says a freak storm is to blame for the disaster.

He says he received no warning of bad weather when he set out from Batam island, heading for Sumatra.

The search for 17 missing people from the Dumai Express is continuing off the coast of Indonesia.

More than 250 people have been rescued from the sea after the ferry sank on Sunday.

While there were only 213 passengers listed on the ship's manifest, passengers have estimated that more than 300 people may have been aboard when it sank.

Two metre high waves caused the hull to crack and there are reports of leaking lifeboats and fights between passengers and the crew over the distribution of lifejackets.

Efforts hampered

Indonesia's sea transport director-general says rescue efforts have been hampered by bad weather and waves as high as six metres.

Officials say it rolled over before capsizing about 90 minutes into its voyage.

Indonesia relies heavily on ferry services, which are the main means of passenger transport between the Riau Islands and larger Indonesian islands such as Sumatra and Java.

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