Basarnas Ship Carrying Sumatran Disaster SAR Rock Arrives In Sibolga

JAKARTA - The state ship (KN) Ganesha owned by Basarnas arrived and docked at Sibolga Port, Sibolga City, North Sumatra, Saturday morning at around 03.20 WIB, after traveling five days and four nights from Jakarta through the waters of the west coast of Sumatra Island.

Mualim I KN Ganesha Teuku Sufriadi Ramadhani said that the overall voyage was relatively conducive, although it had light rain but did not provide significant disruption to the speed of the ship while crossing the west coastal route of Sumatra.

"The weather is quite supportive of this voyage," he said when met at the port.

He admitted that the ship could not travel at the maximum speed in its voyage to Sibolga, even the crew had directed the ship further away and pushed into the middle of the sea from the proper flow.

This was done because many large logs were washed away when met in the border area of West Sumatra - North Sumatra waters.

"Many even as we went to the middle, it was still there, that's not the maximum speed we had to make sure the ship's propellers remained safe and were not damaged. Yes, Alhamdulillah," he said.

KN Ganesha (SAR-105) was manned by 16 crew from the Jakarta SAR Office, and carried as many as 43 potential SAR including four national reporters, and 21 rescuers from the Jakarta, Bandung and Banten SAR Offices.

They previously departed from Tanjung Priok Port, Jakarta, Tuesday (2/12), to Teluk Bayur Port, Padang, West Sumatra.

The shipping route crosses the Sunda Strait, Semangka Strait, and the west coast of Sumatra, then rises to the waters of Bengkulu to reach Padang.

The total distance on the track reaches about 540 nautical miles or more than 1,000 kilometers.

Upon arrival in Bayur Bay, the ship deployed a number of additional logistics assistance and SAR personnel to support search and rescue operations in a number of areas affected by flash floods and landslides.

After the loading and unloading process and refueling were completed, KN Ganesha resumed the voyage to Sibolga on Friday (5/12) at 08.58 WIB.

The arrival of ships in Sibolga marks the advanced stage of the distribution of Basarnas support to strengthen the emergency response SAR operation for floods and landslides in North Sumatra.

After docking, the personnel and logistics transported were immediately directed to strengthen the command posts and search sectors that still needed additional support including Sibolga City and Central Tapanuli Regency.