The Skipper Tells The Story Of The Sinking Of The Ladang Pertiwi KM: The Engine Dies When The Waves Hit, Some Save Themselves With Plywood

The captain of KM Ladang Pertiwi 2, Supardi (left) while attending a press conference on the development and search for victims of his ship sinking in the Makassar Strait / ANTARA

MAKASSAR - The captain of KM Ladang Pertiwi 2, Supriadi, recounted the chronology of the incident when the wooden ship he controlled was on the high seas when high waves were hit due to bad weather, heavy rain accompanied by lightning occurred in the Makassar Strait.

"We departed from Makassar (Paotere port) heading to Pamantauang. When we departed on Wednesday, May 25 the weather was calm and the sea was calm when we arrived at Butung-Butungan, passing by Kalukuang", said Supriadi on the sidelines of a press conference aboard KN SAR Kamajaya, Port Container, Makassar, South Sulawesi, reported by Antara, Tuesday, May 31.

However, after some time passing through the Kalukuan area and approaching Pamantauan Island, the weather began to change drastically. Strong winds began to hit the ship so that it wobbled and even the ship's engine immediately died.

"At that time, about eight miles from Monitoring, there was a strong wind, suddenly the engine died. The Kompa (sucker) died, so it couldn't start. Baku was against (collision) the waves beside it (the ship)", explained the man who is now 40 years old. that.

When his ship began to sway in the waves and became unstable, he ordered the crew (ABK) along with the ship's passengers to immediately rush to get rescue equipment.

"When the ship was about to sink, I shouted to the crew and passengers, giving me a life vest, cork, and plywood", he recalled.

Because the weather was not friendly, the waves were getting higher, the ship finally sank on Thursday, May 26. Passengers are there trying to save his family.

When asked how many passengers were on his ship, he estimated that there were around 31 people. However, data from local village officials stated that as many as 51 people had not returned to the island.

"I estimate that there were 31 passengers. But, according to the village authorities, there were 51 people, and the records were that the village was looking for it. Because usually, one passenger goes but four people follow", he said.

Currently, he is with three people each, one crew member named Mahfud (victim) and two other people who are not victims namely, the owner of the KM Ladang Pertiwi 2 ship on behalf of Haji Saiful and the village head on the local island, Muhammad Basit is undergoing examination at the office. South Sulawesi Police.

Based on previous data, the number of passengers on the ship was 42 passengers, including the captain and crew of the ship. So far, 31 people have survived, and 11 others are still being searched.

However, from the village head's statement, Basarnas then updated the temporary data, it was recorded that there were 50 passengers on the ship, 31 survived and 19 were still being searched.