Indonesian rescuers search missing 11 fishermen

JAKARTA, Nov 27 (Reuters) Indonesian rescuers are scouring the country's eastern waters in search of 11 fishermen whose boat went missing after experiencing engine failure in the middle of the sea last week, an official said today.

The fishing boat sailed from Buton isle off Indonesia's eastern island of Sulawesi last Wednesday carrying 14 fishermen and was reported missing at the weekend.

Three of the crew were able to save themselves, said Amiruddin, chief of operations at the Southeast Sulawesi province rescue agency.

''The three survivors used a dinghy. Their boat has been pulled away by currents but we are still trying to search. The wind is blowing hard around the waters and the waves could reach up to one metre high,'' he told Reuters by phone from provincial capital Kendari, some 1,800 km east of Jakarta.

Indonesia is the world's largest archipelago with more than 17,000 islands where many people earn a living by fishing. However, safety standards and maintenance are not strictly supervised.

REUTERS PB BD1535