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BANJARMASIN - Five crew members of the KM Virgo Transport 8 survived a ship accident in the Java Sea by clinging to an empty three-kilogramme liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinder and drifting for about nine hours before a tugboat rescued them, Antara news agency reported.
Crew member Akmal said he and four colleagues used the cylinder for support because they could not find a lifeboat or inflatable raft after abandoning the vessel.
"Five of us held onto one LPG cylinder. It was an empty three-kilogramme cylinder," Akmal said after being evacuated and arriving at Trisakti Port in Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan, on Tuesday.
Akmal was among 22 survivors evacuated Tuesday by a Rigid Buoyancy Boat (RBB) from the Banjarmasin Naval Base after being transferred from the KRI Nala at the site.
They had been transferred between several vessels since being rescued at about 10 am local time on Sunday, after the accident occurred around 1am, he said.
Akmal said they entered the water at about 1 am and were found by a tugboat around 10 am, enduring nearly nine hours of large waves while clinging to the cylinder.
While in the water, Akmal and the four other crew members struggled to maintain their grip as large waves battered them until help arrived.
Akmal said he saw neither a lifeboat nor an inflatable raft during their time at sea. The five remained together until the tugboat arrived and pulled them from the water.
"I later saw survivors and dead victims aboard the tugboat, but I did not know their exact condition before they were evacuated from the sea," he said.
Akmal, who is from Garut District, West Java, worked as a cleaner aboard the KM Virgo Transport 8 and had been employed there for about three months before the accident.
As of 9am local time on Tuesday, Basarnas said 114 people had been found, including 108 survivors and six dead. Another 129 people remained missing out of the 243 people aboard.
Of the 114 people found, 110 had reached Banjarmasin, including 108 survivors and two deceased victims. Four other deceased victims were still being evacuated by air, Basarnas said.
The Virgo Transport 8, carrying 243 people, lost contact in the Masalembo waters of the Java Sea around 2am local time on Sunday (Sept 13), while sailing from Surabaya to Banjarmasin. - BERNAMA-ANTARA