Rescuers rush to boat in distress in Indonesia carrying 122

Seventy-seven people are missing, and at least three have died, after a passenger ferry sank off Indonesia on Saturday, although 38 people have been rescued from the sea, the Indonesia transport ministry said on Sunday.

Six rescue vessels have been despatched but are being hampered by bad weather.

All four survivors of the ship, which was sailing from Kolaka in Southeast Sulawesi to Siwa in South Sulawesi, have been sent to Siwa Hospital.

Siwa Port head Muhammad Ridwan said that the KMP Marina TB2 ferry carried 91 adults, 4 children and 12 toddlers.

Barata said several search and rescue ships had been deployed to search for more survivors in the area, where waves of up to five metres (16 feet) were being recorded.

Officials said the past contact from the captain of the boat stated that water was starting to go into the boat.

Police, national search and rescue teams and the navy have been scouring the seas for survivors ever since but have been battling harsh elements.

Television video showed dozens of family members anxiously waiting for their loved ones at the Siwa port.

Over 100 people are missing as a boat traveling between two ports of the Indonesian island of Sulawesi failed to dock at the destination city of Siwa. Usually it has been seen the boats are overcrowded and carelessness in enforcing safety regulations. The vast country spans more than 17,000 islands with a population of 250 million, and boats are a popular and relatively cheap form of transportation.