JAKARTA, Indonesia — Rescuers returned to choppy waters off Indonesia’s Sumatra island today to search for 21 passengers still missing after a ferry sank in a storm. Officials say 254 survivors were pulled from the sea and at least 29 other people drowned.
The Dumai Express 10 was hit by towering waves Sunday and sank about 90 minutes into an inter-island trip from Batam to Dumai in Riau, a province off Sumatra island in western Indonesia. A second ferry ran aground nearby, but all its passengers were said to be safe.
Fishing boats, police patrols and navy warships set out in lashing rain at first light today in search of 21 people reported missing, said Lt. Col. Edwin, a navy officer heading the mission. Like many Indonesians, he uses one name.
Indonesian ferry accidents have killed hundreds of people in recent years.
