Sixteen Divers Search for Passenger Missing in Komodo Park

Labuan Bajo — Sixteen divers were deployed on Wednesday, Oct. 14, to search for Veronica Beatrix Jessica, a 23-year-old passenger still missing after the tourist pinisi Feronia sank in Batu Bolong waters in Komodo National Park.

The vessel sank at about 3:02 p.m. WITA on Tuesday, Oct. 13, while returning to Marina Labuan Bajo after passengers had completed diving activities in Manta waters. The combined search-and-rescue team said Feronia was carrying 25 passengers and five crew members.

Twenty-four passengers and all five crew members were evacuated safely to Marina Labuan Bajo. Jessica was reported missing after becoming trapped in a toilet as the vessel sank.

Why the search matters to visitors in Komodo National Park

The incident concerns a tourist vessel operating in one of Indonesia’s principal marine destinations, where visitors commonly travel by boat between diving sites, islands and Labuan Bajo. For foreign visitors, the report means that a routine park excursion can involve offshore transfers and that emergency operations may continue after an evacuation, particularly when a vessel’s location and a missing passenger remain unresolved.

The 16 divers included personnel from the Labuan Bajo Search and Rescue Post, the Labuan Bajo naval base, the Komodo Professional Divers Association and divers who were friends of the missing passenger. The search followed an earlier operation that ended without finding her.

The reports said the vessel encountered strong currents during its return journey. The search operation was continuing on Wednesday, with authorities looking for the missing passenger in and around the sinking location.

Sources

• detikBali — established regional news organisation
• us.headtopics.com
• iNews TTU — established regional news organisation reporting 29 evacuated, including 24 passengers and all crew, with one 23-year-old passenger missing after KM