460 evacuated after ferry catches fire off Indonesia's Java

All 460 passengers and crew members were evacuated in an hours-long rescue operation after a passenger ferry caught fire off Indonesia's Java island on Tuesday, local media reported.

Carrying 420 passengers and 40 crew members, the ferry, KMP Batumandi, caught fire near Merak Besar Island in Banten province, the local English-language daily Jakarta Globe reported, citing rescue officials.

A total of 18 vessels and supporting units, including rescue boats, tugboats, patrol vessels and fishing boats, were mobilized for the evacuation and firefighting operation.

Footage aired by multiple broadcasters showed thick black smoke billowing from the vessel and panicked passengers scrambling for safety.

The cause of the fire was not immediately known.

Merak is a major ferry port connecting the islands of Java and Sumatra across the Sunda Strait, one of Indonesia's busiest ferry routes.

Indonesia, a nation of more than 17,000 islands, has a long history of maritime accidents.

More than 80 people were killed when a ferry capsized in the Java Sea last month.