A Traumatic Experience

KOMPAS/PRIYOMBODO

Sri Santika, 25, from Batubara regency, North Sumatra, is two months pregnant and is among the survivors of the capsized KM Sinar Bangun ferry in Lake Toba, North Sumatra. Here, she sits together with the families of other missing victims at Tigaras Port, Simalungun regency, North Sumatra, on Sunday (24/6/2018). There are 19 known survivors in the accident.

Surviving a ferry wreck after being adrift for one hour has left a lasting trauma for the survivors of KM Sinar Bangun, which capsized and sank on Lake Toba, North Sumatra, last week. Some of them are pregnant and others lost their husbands, siblings or friends. One survivor, a diver, is too afraid to even see a boat or feel a gust of wind.

Sri Santika, 25, held tight the hand of her husband Muhammad Irfan, 22, when the KM Sinar Bangun ferry capsized after it was hit by strong waves on Monday (18/6/2018). Minutes later, the ferry sank and they were pulled underwater by a strong vortex. Sri, who is pregnant with the couple’s first child, was separated from her husband.

When they were about to plunge into the lake, Sri asked her husband to take off his jacket and shoes so he could swim more easily. “I wanted both of us to survive and take care of our child together,” Sri said. Sri, who is two months pregnant, survived the accident. Her husband is still missing.

Sri was visibly distraught when Kompas met with her at Tigaras Port, Simalungun regency, on Sunday (24/6). She sat silently in a tent. Her stares were empty and her eyes reddened. At times, she broke down in tears.

Sri, who got married to Irfan just three months ago, left her home in Kuala Tanjung, Batubara regency, for a holiday in Samosir on Sunday (17/6). The couple stayed in a friend’s house in Pematang Siantar. On Monday morning, Sri and Irfan almost canceled their plan after Irfan’s motorbike broke down. They brought the motorbike to an auto shop but it could not be fixed.

“We had decided not to go. However, one of our friends lent us his motorbike. We then departed along with six of our friends,” Sri said.

They hopped on a ferry at Tigaras Port in Simalungun and crossed Lake Toba to Simanindo Port in Samosir. In the afternoon, they planned to return to Tigaras. When they first stepped on KM Sinar Bangun, they were concerned as they saw lines of motorbikes on the ferry’s bow and stern as well as inside one of its deck rooms.

Passengers overcrowded all of the ferry’s three decks. They were everywhere – on seats, on the floor and even sitting on stairs. Many others were standing on the decks and it was difficult to move around. Sri, her husband and their friends chose to sit on deck three. The ferry eventually departed Simanindo Port at 4:30 p.m. “Many of the passengers were worried by the overcrowded ship and the bad weather,” Sri said.

After sailing for around half an hour, the weather got worse. Waves hit the ferry’s left hull several times, causing it to tilt sharply to the right. Its masts were making loud creaky sounds. “Then a huge wave hit the ship from the left side. It capsized to the right,” Sri said.

Dozens of passengers cried hysterically and screamed for help, while holding on to the ferry’s hull. Some tried to climb on top of it. Not five minutes later, the ferry sank. The subsequent strong vortex pulled Sri and her husband several meters underwater.

Sri then tried hard to swim back up. She felt the hands of other passengers pulling at her feet from below. Some kicked at her from above. However, she refused to give up and she soon resurfaced. She saw a helmet and grabbed it. It kept her afloat. Sri then saw a man holding a lifejacket. “Help me, I am pregnant,” she shouted at the man, whom she later found out was Rahmat Saputra, 22.

Both of them ended up holding on to the one lifejacket. They were glad when they saw the KMP Sumut ferry approaching. However, the ship then sailed away after saving only three survivors. The ship then came back, threw lifejackets overboard and helped other survivors.

After being adrift for almost an hour, they were finally saved by KM Sinta Damai.

Record of the accident

When the ferry was about to capsize, another survivor Elpri Sinaga, 20, said that he was hopeless and thinking that he would not survive. He then climbed on top of the capsized ship and recorded the event. “I was planning to quickly upload it to Facebook so that my mother will know that I was on the sinking ferry,” he said.

Jesika, a resident of Dolok Pardamean, Simalungun, also recorded the event for one minute and 48 seconds. Her video captured the mass panic as the ferry had capsized and was about to sink and dozens of passengers cried for help as they held on to the ship’s hull. Jesika did not upload the video. After the boat sank, she was carried away by the current. She survived by holding on to a helmet before she was saved by KM Sinta Damai. Three of her friends also survived. Two others are still missing.

Trauma

Dino Simson Aritonang, 34, was sitting by the window of his house in Simanindo village, Simanindo district, Samosir regency, on Saturday (23/6). While tightly hugging his second child Alika, 3, the employee of a fish cultivation company in Tigaras told the story of the traumatizing moment.

KOMPAS/ADITYA PUTRA PERDANA

Dino Simson Aritonang, a survivor of the KM Sinar Bangun ferry that capsized and sank in Lake Toba Monday last week, sits with his daughter in his home in Simanindo village, Simanindo district, Samosir regency, North Sumatra, on Saturday (23/6/2018). Dino survived as he was sitting outside on the ferry’s deck.

On Monday afternoon, Dino hopped on KM Sinar Bangun to get from Simanindo to Tigaras to attend a relative’s wedding in Pematang Siantar. There was drizzle in Simanindo but the water was calm. “It was only after we passed Malau Island that the wind got stronger,” Dino said.

According to him, overcrowded boats are commonplace in the Simanindo-Tigaras ferry service.

As the weather worsened, the ferry was turned northwesterly to avoid strong waves. “However, just a few moments later, strong wind came from the west. I was outside at the time but there was no time to jump. Everything happened so quickly,” he said.

Dino, an experienced diver, knew what he had to do the moment he was plunged into the water. He stayed away from crowds to avoid any pulling from panicked people. After swimming for five meters, he tried to swim back and help the others.

Afterwards, the KMP Sumut ferry passed by. “I tried to go after the ferry. I caught a lifejacket that was thrown from it and I gave it to others who needed help. My thought was that I would be a useless diver if I could not help people,” he said.

Afterwards, KM Sinta Damai approached and saved more than a dozen people, including Doni.

The moment he was aboard the ship, he collapsed. He passed out after being adrift for one hour. After the ship reached port, Dino and the other survivors were taken to the Simarmata community health center (Puskesmas) by ambulance. He gained his consciousness the next day at his home.

Dino was still shaken and would instantly curl up when he tried to recall the harrowing memory. “I am still traumatized. The scenes just came back to me again and again. I haven’t been outside my home,” he said.

Dino’s wife Ita Boru Turnip, 33, said that her husband often just sat in silence with an empty stare. She said that she tried her best to console him. “I am really grateful that he survived. Our three children are still young,” she said.

Other than Alika, Dino and Ita also have Zevanya, 5, and a 2-month-old baby nicknamed Ucok.

As of Saturday, Dino has yet to report to Simanindo Port as a survivor. His name was not on the list of survivors. He has yet to return to work. He is still afraid to see boats or feel the wind at the docks.

As of Sunday night, 184 passengers of KM Sinar Bangun remained unaccounted for. So far, there are 19 survivors and three fatalities. At Tigaras Port, families are still clinging onto the hope that good news comes their way.