Basarnas closes the Virgo Transport 8 search with 53 people still missing

ANTARA reported on 4 November 2026 that Indonesia’s National Search and Rescue Agency has ended its 53-day search for victims of the Virgo Transport 8 ferry accident in the Java Sea. I Putu Sudayana, head of the Banjarmasin Class A Search and Rescue Office and coordinator of the search, said the decision followed a joint evaluation. “The SAR operation for Virgo Transport 8 ferry has been closed today, Wednesday, November 4, 2026. Monitoring will continue with all elements,” he said.

By the final day, search teams had found 190 people: 108 survivors and 82 dead. The remaining 53 of the 243 people aboard were still missing, more than seven weeks after the accident on 13 September 2026. Sudayana said the closure complied with Law No. 29 of 2014 on Search and Rescue, which provides for a seven-day search that can be extended if signs of survivors emerge. He said the evaluation found no further indications that would justify continuing surface searches. Salvage of the wreckage remained underway and did not warrant reopening the mission. Basarnas and the other agencies will keep monitoring and will act on credible information that could lead to further searches.