Jakarta, MINA – The joint SAR team officially halted the search operation for five journalists and three crew members of KM Arupadatu I who went missing in the waters of the Sunda Strait, Banten. The operation was stopped on Thursday after lasting 10 days without finding the group or the vessel.
Banten Governor Andra Soni announced the termination of the operation at the Main Post of the Joint SAR Team, Marina Carita Pier, Pandeglang. The decision was taken after an evaluation showed that searches across various sectors had not yielded any clues regarding the whereabouts of the eight people.
On the final day, 523 joint SAR personnel conducted sweeps via sea, land, and air routes. The search area had been expanded to approximately 8,509 square nautical miles to increase the chances of finding the missing group.
During the operation, the SAR team found 13 floating objects at sea. However, after verification by the Ditpolairud of the Banten Regional Police, all objects were declared unrelated to KM Arupadatu I or its equipment.
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The eight people still being searched for consist of five journalists: M. Bagus Khoirunnas from ANTARA, Ari Basuki from Merdeka, Yudhistiro from iNews, Firman Daus from Anadolu, and Donal Husni, a freelance journalist. The three crew members who also went missing are Warta (captain), Surakman (crew member), and Heriyanto (guide).
Although the joint operation has been halted, Basarnas and local governments stated that monitoring will continue. The search operation can be reopened if new clues are found or if there are confirmed public reports regarding the whereabouts of the group or KM Arupadatu I.[]
Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)
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