Crews battled a fire on a passenger boat on Sunday evening (March 7) on a moored boat at Sorong city port in Indonesia's West Papua.

All passengers and crew were able to escape, according to Newsflare's filmer, a local journalist.

Video shows the entire boat, Kapal Motor Fajar Baru 8, in flames and firefighters tackling the blaze with hoses.

The fire is thought to have been started by discarded cigarette butts, the journalist said.

Interviewed on camera is Jece Julita Piris, head of Sorong's port authority and harbormaster office (KSOP). The fire began on the rear deck, she said.

The boat's 138 passengers and 11 crew had recently arrived from Waisai in the Raja Ampat Islands, Indonesia.

The ship's captain and crew are being questioned by KSOP.

The passenger motor boat FAJAR BARU-8 caught fire on the evening of March 7, 2021, at around 6:40 p.m. Eastern Indonesian Time while it was anchored at the people's port, Sorong City, West Papua.

All passengers, crew and port visitors scattered to save themselves.

A number of ships that were docked at the port were immediately evacuated to avoid things that were not desirable.

The firefighters who arrived at around 6:50 p.m. immediately tried to extinguish the fire.

The boat, which was still moored, was pulled several times by residents to change course, in order to facilitate blackout efforts in all parts.

Based on the results of an interim investigation by the Sorong Port Authority and Harbormaster Office (KSOP), the fire started from the two rear deck.

The origin of the fire is thought to have come from cigarette butts discarded by passengers.

There were no casualties from this incident, 138 passengers who had just arrived from Waisai, Raja Ampat and 11 crew members were declared safe.

The entire body of the ship was burnt.

The ship's captain, Petrus Bukarakombang and his men are currently still being questioned at the Ksop office.

Sound byte : Jece Julita Piris (the head of the Sorong KSOP office) time code 03:43 – 04:14