The Indonesian Navy Evacuated 17 Victims Of The Sinking Of KM Putri Papua In Sorong Waters

Indonesian Navy personnel are evacuating 17 victims of the KM Putri Papua tourist boat which suffered engine failure and finally sank in the waters of Sorong Regency, Southwest Papua, Tuesday (4/2/2025) in the early hours of the morning. ANTARA/HO-Humas Koarmada III)

JAKARTA - The Indonesian Navy (AL) from Koarmada III through KRI Matabongsang (MBS)-873 managed to evacuate 17 victims of the KM Putri Papua tourist boat which suffered engine failure and finally sank in the waters of Sorong Regency, Southwest Papua on Tuesday, February 4 in the morning.

Kadispen Koarmada III, Marine Lieutenant Colonel (S) Ajik Sismianto explained, the incident began at TW. 05.47 WIT, when Sops Koarmada III received information via WhatsApp regarding the KM Putri Papua ship, a tourism phinisi ship belonging to Grand Komodo, which suffered engine failure at position 1 deg 35.934 LS - 130 deg 55,506 BT.

"Following up on the report, at 06.00 WIT, Koarmada III ordered KRI Matabongsang - 873 to immediately evacuate with a distance of about 12 Nautical Miles (NM) from the ship's reported location," he said in a written statement, Tuesday, February 4, which was confiscated by Antara.

At 07.22 WIT, KRI MBS arrived at the location, but did not find the whereabouts of KM Putri Papua. Search efforts were carried out to the east while contacting the ship.

Then, at . 07.46 WIT, KRI MBS received visual contact in the form of smoke at 01.50 WIT, KRI MBS managed to receive a radio beam from KM Putri Papua but the signal then disappeared.

"KRI MBS moved closer to the ship to carry out the evacuation. At 08.00 WIT, KRI MBS carried out its role to evacuate the victims, at that time KM Putri Papua was already submerged," he said.

Furthermore, at 08.05 WIT, KRI MBS managed to evacuate 17 people, consisting of eight crew members (ABK) of Indonesian citizens (WNI), nine passengers consisting of three Indonesian citizens and six foreign nationals (WNA).

"There were two crew members who were injured, consisting of one with the nails being removed and the other experiencing trauma due to the ship's rubble," he explained.

After successfully evacuating the victim, he continued, at 08.10 WIT, KRI MBS contacted Syahbandar Sorong to report the position of the sinking of the ship as a navigation hazard for other ships in the waters.

Furthermore, at 08.10-08.50 WIT, data collection was carried out on personnel, materials, and the provision of first aid for injured victims.

At 08.55 WIT, KRI MBS moved to Lantamal XIV Sorong from the evacuation site with a distance of about 55 NM (4 hours of shipping) to carry out medical evacuation and ensure the condition of all victims is safe.

According to him, the success of KRI Matabongsang-873 in evacuating all victims of KM Putri Papua safely showed the alertness of the Indonesian Navy in responding to an emergency at sea.

"This operation is also a tangible manifestation of the TNI AL's commitment to maintaining shipping safety and helping maritime communities who experience disasters," he said.