Jakarta, Rabi'I 09, 1437, December 20, 2015, SPA -- Rescuers found 23 survivors and two bodies from a ferry that sunk off the island of Sulawesi, an official said Sunday, according to dpa. The ferry was carrying 117 people when it departed Saturday morning from Kolaka in north Sulawesi to Siwa in south-east Sulawesi for a six-hour journey. "We have found so far 25 passengers, including two children who are dead," Transportation Minister spokesman JA Barata said. The ship began to take on water in as it was nearing its destination, and local authorities received a distress call from the ship at 3:45 pm (GMT +8). Barata said the waves were surging as high as 5 metres, hampering search and rescue efforts high. National Disaster Mitigation Agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said crews were still searching for the rest of missing people from the boat. --SPA 10:11 LOCAL TIME 07:11 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w