Charred ferry in Jakarta port as death toll hits 20

JAKARTA, Feb 25 (Reuters) An Indonesian ferry that caught fire last week packed with hundreds of people has been towed to Jakarta's main port as the navy searches for victims and survivors in the area where flames engulfed the ship.

The known death toll from last week's blaze has reached 20, navy rescue team head Colonel Didin Zainal Abidin told Reuters today.

About 300 of those who were on board are known to have survived, but how many are still missing is clouded in confusion because a number of passengers were apparently not listed on the official manifest.

The Levina I was on its way to Bangka island off Sumatra when it caught fire soon after dawn on Thursday 80 km (50 miles) from Jakarta's Tanjung Priok port.

''The number of the dead (before) was 16, plus 4, so now it is 20,'' Abidin said by telephone.

Earlier on the weekend, nine navy ships and two helicopters were reported to be involved in the search.

The scorched ferry was towed into Tanjung Priok port late yesterday.

Some estimate scores of passengers could still be missing based on statements from individuals who say they had relatives on the ferry. Some people might also have been saved without their rescue having been recorded.

It is common in Indonesia for people to sneak on to ferries or bribe crew to let them on for less than the price of a ticket, meaning their names do not show on the official manifest.

Preliminary findings suggest the fire started in a truck carrying inflammable chemical cargo on the lower deck, officials say.

Many passengers hurled themselves off the blazing 27-year-old Japanese-built vessel into the sea to escape the flames and searing heat.

Ferries are a popular means of transport among the 17,000 islands of Indonesia, where sea connections are cheaper and more available than air routes. But safety standards are not always strictly enforced and accidents occur fairly often.

REUTERS SY BD1108