Sumenep, Aug. 2 -- Indonesian authorities deployed nine vessels on Sunday to evacuate 250 passengers and crew after the passenger ferry Mutiara Sentosa 2 caught fire off Sumenep, East Java, police said.

Sumenep Police public relations chief Widiarti said the ferry was traveling from Tanjung Perak Port in Surabaya to Makassar when the fire broke out on Sunday morning. The incident occurred 19 nautical miles north of Sapudi Island in the waters off Sumenep, at coordinates 06deg30'64" South Latitude and 114deg00'19" East Longitude.

"Nine vessels have been dispatched to carry out the evacuation," Widiarti said.

The vessels deployed for the rescue operation include KN Search and Rescue (SAR) 249 Permadi, a rescue boat from the Surabaya Sear...