Fourteen people from a ferry that sank in Indonesia were picked up by a cargo ship after spending nine days on a life raft, a rescue official said today.
A 15th person died soon after being rescued by the ship late yesterday, said the head of the search and rescue agency on Bali.
The Senopati Nusantaracar ferry had 628 people on board when it sank late on December 29th in the Java Sea after being pounded by heavy waves for several hours on a voyage from the Indonesian section of Borneo island to Java.
Some 245 people have since been found alive. Only 13 bodies have been recovered, though a navy spokesman said hundreds of bodies were likely trapped inside the lower decks of the sunken ferry.
Those rescued yesterday had drifted almost 370 miles before being picked up. Three bodies were recovered just north of Bali today.
A government transport investigator said last week she suspected waves entered the car deck over the door and became trapped, adding to vessel's weight and making it unstable.
Sea accidents are common in Indonesia, which has more than 17,000 islands.