Indonesian navy rescues 73 from sunken ferry

Jakarta, June 22 : Indonesia's navy has pulled 73 survivors from choppy seas off Sumatra island after a ferry sank in a storm, but 47 people were still missing, a navy official said today.

The Sinar Mulia Indah ferry left Sibolga port late yesterday, a senior rescue official said.

''Up until now, 73 people have been rescued,'' Lieutenant-Colonel Jaka Santoso, chief of the Sibolga naval base, told Reuters.

Santoso added three Americans were on the boat's manifest, but could not confirm whether the foreigners were among the survivors.

''Those who have been rescued have not reached shore yet,'' he said, adding the navy was leading the search operation.

Dianta Bangun, head of the search and rescue office in North Sumatra province, said rescuers were still trying to locate the boat which had 108 passengers and 12 crewmen.

''The information is it has sunk between Sumatra and Nias islands. The cause was a storm,'' said Bangun.

Ferries are a popular means of transport between the 17,000 islands of Indonesia, where sea connections are cheaper and more available than air routes. But safety standards are not strictly enforced and many ferries are overcrowded.

Reuters