Mentawai Islands, West Sumatra. All passengers and crew aboard a boat that capsized in Mentawai Islands Regency, West Sumatra, have been found alive after a 24-hour search, officials confirmed Tuesday afternoon. Some survivors were left drifting at sea for hours before rescue teams reached them.

The boat, carrying 16 passengers and two crew members, overturned after being hit by large waves during bad weather on Monday afternoon. Five passengers and two crew members managed to swim ashore and were rescued the same day, while 11 others were initially reported missing in the Sipora Strait.

The rescue vessel Ramawijaya transported all 18 survivors from North Pagai District back to Tuapeijat Port, Mentawai, following a sea journey of more than an hour in extreme weather and rough seas.

Medical teams were on standby at the dock, immediately evacuating the survivors one by one for medical attention. Families who had been waiting since early morning broke into tears of relief as their loved ones were brought ashore safely.

All survivors were then taken to Mentawai Regional General Hospital for health checks and intensive care. Most of the passengers were government employees from the Mentawai Islands Regency, including one member of the local council (DPRD). There were also three children among the passengers.

Some of the missing passengers had been found floating in the waters around Pagai and Sipora Islands.

In response to the incident, Mentawai Islands Regent Rinto Wardana pledged to review safety standards for passenger vessels operating in the area.

“We will immediately inspect and record all boats operating in Mentawai, including checking the qualifications of their operators. The Mentawai seas are known for extreme weather conditions, as we experienced today, and this must be a shared concern to prevent similar incidents in the future,” Rinto said.

The rescue operation involved joint search and rescue teams from the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas), the military, police, the regional disaster mitigation agency (BPBD), and residents, who had been working tirelessly since the incident was first reported.

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