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JAKARTA - The search for five journalists, two boat crew members and a guide who went missing in the Sunda Strait entered its 10th day on Thursday, with no sign of them or their speedboat found so far, as authorities significantly expanded the search area.
Banten Search and Rescue Office Operations chief Rizky Dwianto said the search now covers waters from around the Sunda Strait into the Indian Ocean towards Enggano Island off Bengkulu province on Sumatra's southwestern coast.
"It has been expanded to 8,509 square nautical miles, with a total of 24 joint vessels on standby across 10 sectors. All the areas we have divided into the 10 sectors are within areas where the vessel or the persons on board we are searching for could have drifted," he said, according to Antara News Agency.
The search operation, involving 523 personnel from the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) and other agencies, was extended by three days after the initial seven-day SAR operation ended without locating the eight people.
The missing journalists are Muhammad Bagus Khoirunnas of Antara, Firdaus Wajidi (Anadolu Agency), Ari Basuki (Merdeka.com), Yudistiro Pranoto (iNews) and freelance journalist Donal Husni, while the others are boat crew members Warta and Surakman, and guide Heriyanto.
The group went missing on Sept 7 during a reporting assignment on the Anak Krakatau eruption in the Sunda Strait, which separates Java and Sumatra. - BERNAMA
