By KYLIE STEVENS, SENIOR BREAKING NEWS REPORTER, AUSTRALIA and ASHLEY NICKEL, NEWS REPORTER, AUSTRALIA
Published: 22:35 BST, 12 August 2026 | Updated: 23:01 BST, 12 August 2026
An Australian man who survived a deadly ferry fire off Bali, Indonesia, has described the 'massive' flames and floating for hours after the incident.
More than 170 people were evacuated from the KMP Putri Yasmin ferry on Wednesday after it caught fire while travelling from Padang Bai to Lembar on Lombok.
The ship caught fire at about 4.20am, local time, amid rough conditions, with waves reaching up to four metres.
Indonesian authorities confirmed the death of an Indonesian woman and the successful evacuation of 172 people, including three infants, to ports on Bali and Lombok.
Two Australians were on board, a 20-year-old woman and James Scooth, who suffered broken ribs after jumping from the burning vessel.
He then spent four hours floating at sea until he was eventually pulled from the water.
'Big flames. Just massive, big. And then everyone panics and just rips (out their) life jackets. No lifeboats. No boats,' he told 7News.
'(I was) just floating. Four hours or something. Four hours I think.'
James Scooth was one of two Australians on board when the KMP Putri Yasmin burst into flames off Bali on Wednesday
Smoke was still billowing from the burning ferry hours later
One woman died, while the 172 other passengers on board were safely evacuated
An Indonesian woman said she only had time to save her child, while one rescuer described being left 'speechless' by the efforts to save passengers.
Footage released by the National Search and Rescue Agency showed people in life jackets crowded on an inflatable life raft in choppy seas. Thick black smoke billowed from the burning ferry.