Levina 1

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A specialist fireboat dousing down the burnt-out shell of the ferry

The Levina 1 was an Indonesian passenger ferry. On February 22, 2007, it caught fire, killing at least 51 people. Three days later, on February 25, it sank with a group of pressmen and investigators on board, killing at least one more and leaving three missing.

1 Background
2 Fire
- 2.1 Rescue effort
3 Sinking
4 Investigation
5 Aftermath
6 References

[edit] Background

The Levina 1 was a 2,000-ton vessel.^[1] It was 27 years old,^[2] and owned and operated by PT Praga Jaya Sentosa.^[3] On the day of the accident, it was on a voyage from the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, en route to the island of Bangka.^[2]

[edit] Fire

The vessel caught fire several hours after leaving port,^[1] prior to dawn,^[4] at a location 60 nautical miles (80 kilometers, or 50 miles) from the start port of Tanjung Priok.^[5] Hundreds of passengers escaped the burning ship by jumping into the Java Sea.^[1] Over 290 people had to be rescued.^[1] At least 51 people were killed in the disaster,^[6] but the Indonesian Red Cross says the number could be as much as 89.^[7] The ships log claimed the ship was carrying 228 passengers, 42 trucks and eight cars, but the navy claims it had at least 350 passengers on board.^[2] It is common for logs of passengers to be left uncompleted and boats to be overloaded in Indonesia.^[2] It is generally reported that 300-330 people were on board.^[8]^[3] In reference to the incomplete manifest, Transport Minister Hatta Rajasa said "It is a big mistake that the ferry company never registered the identity of children passengers. It is a big, big mistake. I am going to give them heavy sanctions for that,".^[9]

[edit] Rescue effort

The ferry's sister ship, Levina II, rescued many passengers, as did Filipino ship Princess Vanessa.^[10] In total, two warships, three helicopters, a tug boat and nine cargo ships participated in the search and rescue operation.^[2] The wounded were either transported straight to hospitals, or if necessary first treated at a makeshift centre set up at the port.^[4] 60 people were able to swim to a nearby island.^[11]

[edit] Sinking

After the fire had been extinguished, tugboat TB Jayakarta III towed the ship into the waters of Tanjung Priok on February 24.^[3] The following day, a party of four investigators and twelve journalists were taken to the ship by a police boat.^[1]^[7] The reporters came from the Indosiar, Metro TV, ANTV, Lativi, RCTI and SCTV TV stations and the Elshinta radio station.^[7] Many of those who boarded did not put on lifevests; although they had been available, the police had not made them mandatory.^[1] The ferry was still under tow at the time, being seven nautical miles from the port itself.^[7]^[5] It was already listing slightly prior to the party boarding the wreck, and the group had been previously warned the ferry wasn't safe.^[7] The Indonesian investigative authority, the KNKT, had not given the group permission to board, but they saw other journalists on board, and followed suit.^[6] Once onboard the hulk, the journalists went to deck three where they interviewed the head of the city's Water Police, Adj. Sr. Comr. Frederik Kalembang.^[7] Shortly after the party boarded the vessel, it suddenly listed sharply.^[1] Police officers monitoring the vessel from a nearby boat used a loudspeaker to order an immediate evacuation of the ship. ^[7] Most of those on board rushed down to deck two, where they escaped via a window at the end of the deck.^[7] The ship sank within five minutes.^[1] One six-man lifeboat nearly capsized due to being heavily overloaded.^[7] One Lativi cameraman subsequently died in hospital,^[5] and three other people were left unaccounted for.^[1] The missing people are two police forensics officers and a SCTV cameraman.^[7]^[8] Four more people were seriously injured.^[12] Subsequent diving operations on the wreck failed to locate the bodies of the deceased.^[12]

[edit] Investigation

A full investigation was launched after the twin disasters by the National Transport Safety Committee and the Police Forensic Laboratory.^[5] So far, the investigation has established that the fire started in a truck on the car deck.^[2] It is believed to have been a chemical fire, as the ship's crew reported that when they attempted to douse the tarpaulin-covered truck with water the ferocity of the fire increased.^[6] The trucker's ticketing agency shows that one of the trucks was loaded with cases of premixed petroleum, a rare and expensive commodity in Indonesia.^[6] The ship's captain was interviewed as part of the investigative procedure.^[3] Preliminary reports suggest that negligence on the part of the operator contributed to the disaster.^[3] The investigation has also revealed that no inspection of the boat's documents was conducted prior to departure.^[3] The vessel's skipper, as well as four other crew members, were also the subject of a criminal investigation regarding possible negligence.^[13]

[edit] Aftermath

Setyo Rahardho, head of the National Transport Safety Commission, said that "Journalists will not be allowed to accompany investigators any more," in the aftermath of the disasters.^[1] Hatta Radjasa, Indonesian minister for transportation, personally ordered the Directorate of Sea Transportation to revoke the operator's license in response to the incorrect documentation.^[3] The directorate did so, and also suspended local harbourmaster J. Karelantang over his responsibility regarding the misleading documents.^[3] The captain, Andi Kurniawan and the first officer, Sunaryo, (who only goes by one name; a common practice in Indonesia) were arrested after the disaster on suspicion of contributing to the disaster via negligence.^[5]