A fire erupted on a ferry that was carrying passengers between islands in Indonesia.

Footage shows the blaze ripping through piles of goods left on the stern of the KM Express Natuna that was sailing off the southeastern coast of Sulawesi at around 11 am on October 4.

A rescue team was dispatched to the ferry's coordinates. Firefighters arrived and found that the fire had already been extinguished.

Amiruddin AS, head of the Kendari Basarnas rescue office, said in a statement: 'There were passengers who saw fire coming from a pile of packages goods at the stern of the upper deck. The possible source of the fire was suspected to be a discared cigarette butt that ignited the items.'

He added that all 82 passengers and crew safely docked at the Wanci Port in the afternoon.