The death toll from the fire that broke out on the Express Cantika 77 ferry in Naikliu, Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara, on Monday climbed to 17 as of Tuesday evening.

“Today, the SAR team found three more bodies of passengers, taking the death toll to 17,” chief of the SAR Office in Kupang I Putu Sudayana informed on Tuesday.

The bodies of the three passengers were found as far as eight miles from the area where the ferry boat caught fire in the waters off Timor Naikliu island, Kupang district, on Monday, he said.

SAR workers retrieved the bodies of the three passengers and brought them to KN Antareja state ship on the second day of the search, which covered the coast of Kupang Bay.

“The three bodies have been evacuated on board KN Antareja and will soon be taken to Kupang tonight,” Sudayana said.

As of Monday, 326 people who survived the fire had been evacuated from the ill-fated boat. They were taken to Kupang in batches, with the first batch of 17 people arriving at Tenau Port, Kupang, on Monday evening.

Source: Antara News