80 people missing in ferry accident off Sulawesi coast

Siwa, Indonesia

NEARLY 80 people are still missing almost 24 hours after a ferry ran into trouble in rough seas off the coast of Indonesia's Sulawesi, with authorities not ruling out the possibility of a sinking.

The transport ministry has confirmed that three people, including two children, have been found dead, while 39 others have been pulled from the water alive, some after desperately clinging to fishing buoys for hours in the huge swell until help arrived.