JAKARTA, July 12 (Xinhua) -- Rescuers have temporarily terminated a search and rescue mission for victims of a ship which capsized in the waters off East Nusa Tenggara province in the central part of Indonesia last Sunday due to lack of clues for their whereabouts on the scene, a top rescuer said on Sunday.
Six people remain missing after the rescuers retrieved three bodies and rescued 19 other passengers, head of the Search and Rescue Office in the province's capital of Kupang, Emy Freezer revealed, adding another passenger was dead during a medical treatment.
"The clue for the whereabouts of the victims has been lacking. So, we have decided to transiently end the mission. However, if a clue or any information about the position of the victims appears, we will immediately resume the mission," he told Xinhua via phone.
"For now, we still conduct monitoring and watch the situation on the scene," he remarked.
The ship named KM Kasih 25, carrying 25 people, went down in Fakuafu Strait after departing from a sea port in the province's capital of Kupang, according to Freezer, adding the ship was sailing to Rote Ndao district in the province. Enditem
