The high speed vessel carrying 112 passengers and crew sank off the coast of Bone, South Sulawesi in inclement weather conditions.

Multiple survivors stated that rough waves managed to damage the ferry's hull and flooded the vessel.

They blamed bad weather as the main cause of the disaster, producing waves higher than the safe limit height for the ferry, which is two metres (6 ft 7 in).

Contributing to the disaster were design flaws in the ferry's structure and the poor handling of the emergency by the crew.

Video footage taken by onlookers during the departure showed that the weather at the time was in good condition.

The ferry was repeatedly hit by rough waves and high winds causing the ship to roll violently.

The captain struggled to maintain the control of the ferry and asked the crew to be on alert and to prepare the passengers for an emergency.

[1] At 13:30 local time, the crew heard a loud crack from the bow and the bulwark of the ferry started to separate.

The captain then ordered the crew to check on the lower decks and assessment the situation at the bow.

As he was struggling for the controls, large amounts of water continued to enter and the ferry began taking on a heavy list.

[1] The ferry, overwhelmed by wind, waves, and water egress, was finally stopped by the captain and the order given to abandon ship.

At 14:20 local time, a distress transmission was sent to ground officers stating that the ferry was sinking and asking for immediate assistance.

The crew recalled that as they were evacuating the passengers, they only managed to inflate one life raft, while the other four were unusable.

As a result, many passengers jumped into the sea without life vests and were swept away by the rough waves.

[1] The ground officers immediately contacted the Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency at 14:20 local time.

In response to the emergency, officials in Siwa Harbor dispatched MV Marina Express 3 to the area.

However, due to the rough waves and windy condition in the area, officials postponed the rescue operation.

The search and rescue operation had to be called off by authorities due to the deteriorating weather condition.

On 06:00 local time, the crew of MV Marina Express 3 managed to rescue 20 survivors.

Felicianus Henry Bambang Sulistyo, stated that he would observe the rescue effort and would visit the survivors and the relatives of the victims in the hospital.

In the evening, authorities announced that three bodies, including one child and one infant, had been recovered and 70 people were still missing.

[17][18] Most survivors stated that MV Marina Baru 2B sank due to the enormous height of the waves, which were as high as five metres (16 ft).

[20] Examination on the radar data suggested that waves as high as three metres (9.8 ft) might have been formed due to the storm system throughout Bone Bay.

Thus, the waves managed to tear open the access door, which was located on the forecastle deck of the ferry.