Pandeglang, Banten, Sept. 17 -- On the tenth day of the operation, Thursday, the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) expanded the search area to locate missing journalists and crew members of the speedboat Arupadatu I, which lost contact in the Sunda Strait.

Authorities said the search zone grew to 8,509 square nautical miles (NM), up from 3,439 square NM the previous day.

The Head of the Operations Section at Banten SAR Office, Rizky Dwianto, said the expanded sweep area was divided into 10 main sectors to increase the possibility of locating the subjects of the search.

"It has been expanded to 8,509 square NM, with a total of 24 joint vessels deployed across the 10 sectors," Dwianto said here on Thursday.

The deployment of ...