ople were missing after a passenger ship sank in heavy seas off the Indonesian island of Sumatra, officials said Tuesday.
Twenty-three people were rescued after the Sambu Sakti-1 sank before dawn Saturday with 80 people aboard in waters near Tanjungbatu, 560 miles northwest of Jakarta, the Suara Pembaruan newspaper reported.
Navy ships were searching for the missing, the paper said.
Purnomo, an officer at the National Search and Rescue Agency, told The Associated Press that an unconfirmed report said as many as 110 people might have been on board, meaning as many as 87 might be missing. He said he could not provide further details.
The newspaper quoted officials on Sumatra as saying the ship sank in large waves and strong winds during a voyage between ports on the eastern coast of the island.