At least one person was confirmed dead and more than 30 were missing on Sunday after a ferry sank off Vanuatu’s coast, Prime Minister Jotham Napat’s office said in a statement.
To the families of those missing and those we have lost, please know that the nation stands with you in this time of grief,” it added. Search efforts had been underway since the inter-island ferry sank in bad weather on Friday between the islands of Ambae and Santo, according to New Zealand public broadcaster RNZ. Fifteen of those have been accounted for alive, it added. “To the survivors, we pray for your strength and recovery.
Napat’s office said the search “in open waters is being eased off whilst efforts move toward a search along the south-east coast, where currents may have carried survivors”. “This loss appears to be the result of strong winds and marine warnings not being heeded, and possibly of negligence including overloading of the vessel,” the statement said.
Earlier reporting noted: “Our hearts and prayers are with the families who have lost loved ones. Vanuatu police, the Vanuatu Maritime Safety Authority and the ferry’s operator, Tui Shipping Agency, did not immediately respond to requests for comment. (Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.) Earlier reporting noted: One dead, 30 missing after ferry sinks off Vanuatu One person died and 30 are missing after a ferry sank off the coast of Vanuatu, the South Pacific nation’s government said on Sunday (September 13, 2026). Search and rescue operations are continuing,” read a statement from Vanuatu Prime Minister Jotham Napat’s office on Sunday (September 13).
Earlier reporting noted: Fifteen of those onboard have been “accounted for alive” and one dead body has been recovered, the statement said.
