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More survivors rescued

August 18, 2014

Rescue officials say 13 more people, including eight foreigners, have been saved after a tourist boat sank two days ago off eastern Indonesia, bringing the number of survivors to 23. Two people are still missing.

https://p.dw.com/p/1CwAl
epa04358660 A picture made available on 18 August 2014 shows foreign survivors taking a rest after being rescued from a sinking tourist boat at a house in the outskirts of Bima, West Nusa Tenggara province, Indonesia, 17 August 2014. EPA/STR
Image: picture-alliance/dpa

Eight foreigners and five Indonesians were rescued on Monday, two days after their tourist boat capsized and sank off eastern Indonesia, officials said.

The rescue brought to 23 the number of people saved since the boat sank late on Saturday. Among them were 18 foreign tourists from Germany, New Zealand, Britain, Spain, the Netherlands, France and Italy.

Two foreigners, reportedly from Spain, are said to be still missing. Military and police were reportedly continuing the search for them.

The 13 rescued on Monday were picked up by fishermen very early in the morning. The head of the disaster mangagement agency on Lombok Island said the group were swimming together wearing life jackets.

The ill-fated boat was carrying 20 tourists and five Indonesian crew and tour guides from Lombok Island to Komodo Island, famed as the home of the world's largest lizard, the Komodo dragon. Officials said the vessel struck a rock and was holed.

Some of the survivors swam six hours to reach the nearest island, Sangeang, even though a volcano was erupting on it at the time. They were later rescued by a passing boat. Others survived in the vessel's sole lifeboat, which was too small for all the passengers.

Indonesia relies heavily on boats to connect its more than 17,000 islands, but has a poor maritime safety record. However, boat sinkings involving foreign tourists are rare.

tj/av (AFP, dpa)