Twenty-three people have been killed and dozens injured after a fire ripped through a boat carrying nearly 250 people to islands north of the Indonesian capital Jakarta, the city’s search and rescue agency says.
The Zahro Express caught fire shortly after leaving Muara Angke port in North Jakarta.
The cause of the fire was thought to be a short circuit on a power generator, police said.
The boat was towed back to port where a witness told the Reuters news agency that they saw victims in body bags being removed from the badly charred ship.
According to the head of Jakarta’s search and rescue agency, Hendra Sudirman, 248 people were on board — more than double the previous estimate of 100.
Out of more than 200 people rescued, 32 were being treated at hospitals in Jakarta, he said.
Sea accidents are frequent in Indonesia, a sprawling archipelago, with vessels often overloaded and having too few lifejackets on board.
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