Five dead, around 100 rescued after fire on Indonesia tourist boat

Five people were killed and around 100 people rescued on Sunday after a fire ripped through a boat carrying tourists to islands north of the Indonesian capital Jakarta, authorities said.

Along with five fatalities, 17 people were also injured, said Ferry Budiharso, a spokesman for the Thousand Island police, the area where the boat was heading.

The head of Jakarta's search and rescue agency, Hendra Sudirman, said that 98 people had been rescued.

The boat, Zahro Express, caught fire shortly after leaving Muara Angke port in North Jakarta early on Sunday due to a short circuit on a power generator on the boat, Budiharso said.

Sea accidents are frequent in Indonesia, a sprawling archipelago, with vessels often overloaded and having too few life jackets on boat.