Seven People Missing in Sunda Strait After Speedboat Vanishes Near Krakatau

A speedboat carrying seven people, including five journalists and two crew members, vanished in the Sunda Strait on Sunday afternoon. They were on assignment to cover the eruption of Anak Krakatau. The speedboat departed Pagedongan Pier in Carita, Banten at around 2pm local time. Contact was lost at 14:42 WIB. The signal dropped off entirely at 15:04 WIB, according to Antara News.

Five journalists are among the missing. They are Bagus Khoirunnas from Antara, Arie Basuki from Merdeka, Yudhistira from iNews, Daus from Anadolu Agency, and freelance journalist Donal Husni. A guide and a boat operator were also aboard. The group had gone out to document activity at the volcano, which had been erupting with enough intensity to prompt a 3-kilometre maritime exclusion zone in the days prior.

Search operations are being led by Basarnas, Indonesia's national search and rescue agency, alongside police units. As of Tuesday, no wreckage or survivors had been found. Police intensified their search after the initial efforts on Sunday and Monday failed to locate the speedboat or its passengers, Antara reported.

The Sunda Strait sits between Java and Sumatra and connects the Java Sea to the Indian Ocean. It has been closely watched on MarineRadar as ships routed around the active exclusion zone near Anak Krakatau. Ships were warned to keep 3km clear of the volcano as eruption activity increased in the days before the group set out.