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Major Komodo Search Finds No Trace as Deadline Nears

Officials will decide after Sunday whether to continue beyond the short extension granted this week.

Overview

  • Basarnas deployed 152 rescuers on 17 boats across seven SRUs with side‑scan sonar and diving, sweeping over 60 nautical miles on Jan. 3 without results.
  • Three members of a Valencian family — Fernando Martín Carreras and boys Mateo, 9, and Quique, 10 — remain missing; 12-year-old Lia was found deceased and Andrea and Mar, 7, survived.
  • The seven‑day search limit was extended by at least three days at the request of Spain’s ambassador, with a new assessment expected after Sunday’s operations.
  • The Labuan Bajo tourist port is closed to recreational vessels until at least Jan. 6 under BMKG weather alerts, halting trips to Komodo, Padar and Rinca.
  • Regional police have begun interviewing 17 witnesses as a maritime expert questions the engine‑failure account and points to potential human error, a cause not yet confirmed by investigators.