"The incident started with appearance of fire in the engine room. The crews of the ship tried to extinguish it but failed. The fire kept getting bigger. Consequently, passengers jumped into the water", Latief said.
The incident took place in the waters off Bokori Island after the vessel left from a port city of Kendari.
Another ship helped to extinguish the blaze. All in all, 61 people were rescued by local sailors.