4 killed, dozens missing after ship sinks in Maluku, Indonesia

A passenger ship with over 200 people on board capsized in the waters off Maluku province in eastern parts of Indonesia on Wednesday, killing at least 4 people and leaving dozens missing as 100 people were rescued safely, rescuers said. Head of the Maluku Search and Rescue Office Dody Heryanto told XInhua over phone from the province that a search and rescue operation for those went missing had been underway. The operation involved those from the search and rescue office, officials and local communities, he said. The wooden ship was on route from Saumlaki town to Kampung Siera, both of which were located in the province, said Dody. Huge waves amid poor weather were suspected as the cause of the accident, said Heryanto. Small ship accidents have been frequent recently as it could not bear the smash of heavy waves during extreme weather. On Saturday, a small ship with about 250 illegal immigrants, most of them from the Middle East, sank in waters off the East Java coast, killing at least 51, and leaving dozens feared dead as rescuers secured 48 of them.