September 17, 2026 | 08:38 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - KM Virgo Transport 8 passenger ship en route from Surabaya to Banjarmasin, capsized in the Java Sea early Sunday, September 13, 2026. The ship was carrying 243 passengers and was traveling from Surabaya to Banjarmasin.
Kriyo Sambodho, a marine environmental expert at the Sepuluh Nopember Institute of Technology (ITS) in Surabaya, said the incident location had wind gusts of up to 30 knots and waves up to two meters high. According to the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), these conditions are not in the extreme weather category. However, they could affect the ship's stability.
“Apart from the wave height, the wave direction and wind direction can also be factors that affect the ship's response when sailing in open water,” Kriyo said on Wednesday, September 16, 2026.
The ITS Marine Engineering lecturer also mentioned that wave conditions could cause water to enter, especially through the imperfectly closed ramp door. However, further technical inspection is needed.
Professor of Naval Engineering at ITS, I Ketut Aria Pria Utama, also mentioned the possibility of leakage in the ship, allowing water to enter through the openings. This could happen if the ship is hit by waves.
Ketut added that the leakage could also be dangerous if water enters the open engine room. “Water entering the engine room will accelerate ship damage,” he said.
Another possible cause of the ship overturning, according to Ketut, is a shift in the cargo carried by the Ro-Ro (Roll-on/Roll-off) type ship. He explained that a cargo shift could cause the ship to tilt to one side.
This shift may be due to the cargo not being properly secured to the ship's deck. "It may also be that the lashing is insufficient due to large cargo, ultimately causing it to shift,” said the University of Southampton alumnus from England.
To prevent similar incidents from happening again, Ketut recommended educating the ship's crew about maritime safety and giving passengers information. This education includes information on what to do in the event of water ingress, how to use life jackets, and the evacuation route.
“Life jackets must be available according to the number of passengers and ship crew,” said the Head of the Ship Hydrodynamics Laboratory in the Department of Naval Engineering at ITS.
Ketut recommended that the relevant authorities recheck the characteristics of the Virgo Transport 8, which are not suitable for Indonesian waters. It was purchased from Japan, where the majority of the waters are narrow and not open. “Its characteristics need to be re-evaluated, there may be a mismatch,” Ikap said.
Meanwhile, as of Tuesday morning, the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) confirmed that 114 victims of the KM Virgo Transport 8 had been found. 108 were found safe and six had died. The remaining 129 are still being searched for.
Read: Virgo Transport 8 Ship Owner Must Remove Wreck, Basarnas Says
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