A Solomon Islands inter-island ferry carrying 90 people has been towed to safety after three days adrift in Temotu Province. The MV Awka was sailing between the remote islands of Anuta and Vanikoro when its engine failed on Friday, about 100 nautical miles from its destination, leaving everyone on board stranded at sea.
Rescuers reached the vessel at about 11pm on Sunday, local time, after a large search led by local authorities with support from international partners, including aircraft from Australia and New Caledonia. Planes had earlier dropped emergency supplies, communications equipment and a life raft to the ship, and a bulk carrier nearby transferred food and water. At around midnight a local police patrol boat began towing the ferry towards Vanikoro. Passengers documented the ordeal through the ship’s Starlink internet connection, sharing images of a life raft dropped by a French aircraft and communications equipment dropped from an Australian plane.
Passenger John Tua, a nurse with the provincial government, said the engine had been overheating when it broke down and that everyone on board stayed calm. Temotu Province premier Stanley Tehiahua thanked the governments, including Australia’s, and the shipping companies that took part, but said the response had taken too long to organise. He said many passengers were unhappy with the delay, particularly families with young children and those who were unwell. The ABC asked the Solomon Islands Maritime Safety Administration and the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre for comment.
The incident follows the sinking of the MV Matui in rough seas off neighbouring Vanuatu about four weeks earlier. More than 50 people were on board; two have been confirmed dead, 14 were rescued and 39 are still missing. Peter Nuttall, a technical adviser at the University of the South Pacific’s Micronesian Centre for Sustainable Transport, said after that sinking that Australia could have built “40 to 60 safe, brand new, low-carbon ferries” with the money it spent on more than 20 patrol boats for the region, several of which have since been scrapped.
A spokesperson for Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said Canberra remains a committed partner to the Pacific. The spokesperson listed its support for infrastructure, maritime safety standards, search and rescue capability, weather monitoring, maritime surveillance, action against illegal fishing, maritime training and the Guardian-class Patrol Boat programme.
