Two foreign tourists were killed and about 20 other people were injured in an explosion Thursday on a speedboat that was ferrying them from the Indonesian tourist island of Bali to neighboring Lombok, police said.

Karangasem district police chief Sugeng Sudarso said the "Gili Cat 2" fast boat had about 40 people including crew on board. He said all the passengers have been evacuated and the injured are being treated on the island.

He said the dead are an Austrian woman and a woman of European nationality who police initially said was German.

Police have not yet determined the cause of the explosion, but a member of the forensics team investigating the scene said initial indications are it was an accident. The officer didn't want to be named because he is not an official police spokesman.

Sudarso said the explosion occurred after smoke was seen billowing from an engine.

Ferry accidents are common in Indonesia, a sprawling archipelago made up of thousands of islands where regulation of boat services is often lax.

Sudarso said the explosion, which occurred when the boat was about 200 meters (220 yards) from the port of departure, shattered its rear windows and upended seating.

"We are still questioning the boat captain while a forensic team is examining the scene to find the cause of the explosion," he said.

"One of the passengers died from bad injuries after being hit by boat debris that also caused injuries to others," Sudarso said.

A manifest showed that passengers were from several countries including Britain, France, Italy, Portugal, Ireland and Spain.

Bali became a byword for tragedy in 2002 when bombings by Jemaah Islamiyah militants killed 202 people, mostly foreigners.

A sustained security crackdown since then has weakened JI but counter-terrorism officials say there is still a threat of attacks from militants inspired by the Islamic State group.

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This story has corrected to fix the district police chief's name to Sugeng Sudarso instead of Bambang Sudarso.</s>Twenty people were taken to hospital for injuries sustained in a boat explosion, which killed one other passenger, on Thursday, according to the Denpasar Port Health Office (KKP).

The explosion occurred at 9:35 a.m. local time just after the Gili Cat 2 speed boat departed from Padangbai Port in Karangasem, Bali, for several destinations, including Gili Trawangan in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara.

KKP’s Padangbai office coordinator Putu Swardiana said the incident happened only 200 meters from Padangbai Port.

“Witnesses saw smoke emanating from an area near the boat’s engine. It was reported that a liquid tank exploded,” he told The Jakarta Post.

Putu further said the Gili Cat 2 was carrying 35 passengers, all were foreign citizens.

He said 15 victims were taken to Penta Medika clinic in Manggis village, Karangasem, around three kilometers from Padangbai Port. Five other passengers were taken to Manggis community health center (Puskesmas) while one other was rushed to Klungkung Hospital after sustaining a fractured backbone.

“One female passenger taken to Penta Medika clinic died. We have not yet identified the victim but it is suspected that she is a German citizen,” said Putu, adding that all victims at Penta Medika clinic had been referred to several hospitals in Denpasar.

Karangasem Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Sugeng Sudarso said police were currently investigating the cause of the incident. “The police’s forensic laboratory personnel have been dispatched to the incident’s site,” he said.

Four crew members were on board when the incident occurred. They comprised boat captain Totok Wasito, engineer Sugiarto and deckhands Nyoman Supartika and Kadek Kris. (ebf)

Under investigation: Police have sealed off the Gili Cat 2 speed boat after an explosion on the vessel injured 20 people and killed one on Sept. 15. (JP/Ni Komang Erviani)

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Correction: The article's previous edition contained an error. We reported the name of the boat as the "Gini Cat 2". Its proper name is the "Gili Cat 2", which we have corrected. -Editor</s>Police rule out attack as cause of Bali boat explosion

BALI, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesian police said Friday there is no indication that a terror attack was the cause of a tourist boat explosion in Bali that killed two people and injured about 20 others.

Karangasem district police chief Sugeng Sudarso said investigators believe a fuel leak below deck caused a buildup of fumes that ignited, though the finding is provisional.

Sudarso and Bali police spokesman Made Sudana said there was no sign of terrorism and a bomb squad did not find any explosive materials.

Police investigators examine the Gili Cat 2 boat following an explosion while it was enroute to nearby island of Lombok, at Padangbai Port in Karangasem, Bali, Indonesia, Thursday, Sept. 15, 2016. Police on the Indonesian tourist island of Bali said Thursday a German woman was killed and about 20 other people injured in an explosion on a speed boat ferrying them to neighboring Lombok. (AP Photo)

Investigators have recovered body parts and continue to examine the boat, Sudarso said.

Police on the popular tourist island of Bali have given conflicting accounts of the nationalities of the two women killed in Thursday's explosion but now say one was from Austria and the other from Spain.

Sanglah Hospital gave the same information for the nationalities and said the Austrian woman was 28.

About 20 people were injured on the speedboat that was ferrying tourists from Bali to neighboring Lombok.

Bali became a byword for tragedy in 2002 when bombings by Jemaah Islamiyah militants killed 202 people, mostly foreigners.

A sustained security crackdown since then has weakened JI but counter-terrorism officials say there is still a threat of attacks from radicals inspired by the Islamic State group.

Police investigators examine the Gili Cat 2 boat following an explosion while it was enroute to nearby island of Lombok, at Padangbai Port in Karangasem, Bali, Indonesia, Thursday, Sept. 15, 2016. Police on the Indonesian tourist island of Bali said Thursday a German woman was killed and about 20 other people injured in an explosion on a speed boat ferrying them to neighboring Lombok. (AP Photo)</s>An explosion on a ferry carrying 35 tourists between the Indonesian resort islands of Bali and Lombok on Thursday killed two people, an Indonesian and a Dutch national, and injured 13, police said.

 ‘Two of them died, 13 were injured,’ Bali police spokesman Made Sudana said, adding the explosion happened off the coast of Lombok.

 ‘It seems there was some sort of explosion on the boat, so there was an emergency with the engine.’

 Tourists on board included Australian, Korean, British, French, and German citizens, according to media.

 Bali and neighbouring Lombok are two of Indonesia’s most popular holiday destinations.</s>BALI, Indonesia (AP) — Police on the Indonesian tourist island of Bali said Thursday a German woman was killed and about 20 other people injured in an explosion on a speed boat ferrying them to neighboring Lombok.

Karangasem district police chief Bambang Sudarso said the "Gili Cat 2" fast boat had more than 40 people including crew on board. He said all the passengers have been evacuated and the injured are being treated at a local medical clinic.

The explosion occurred about 200 meters (220 yards) from the port of departure, Padang Bai, and was preceded by smoke billowing from the engine, he said.

"One of the passengers died from bad injuries after being hit by boat debris that also caused injuries in others," Sudarso said.

Aside from Germany, a manifest showed that passengers were from several other countries, including Britain, France, Italy and Spain.</s>DENPASAR -- An explosion hit a tourist boat as it departed the Indonesian resort island of Bali on Thursday, killing one foreign woman and injuring 14 other foreigners, police said.

The blast in the speedboat carrying about 30 passengers appeared to have happened in the fuel tank, said police, adding it was not caused by a bomb. Indonesia has a poor maritime safety record and there have been similar incidents in the past where no foul play was detected.

Authorities said the woman killed on the boat, which was heading for the nearby holiday island of Gili Trawangan, was a foreigner but that they were verifying her identity before releasing more details.

The dead woman and the 14 injured tourists were taken to medical centres on the island, with TV footage showing dazed, bloodied passengers lying on hospital beds and being carried into ambulances on stretchers.

A manifest provided by authorities showed that among the passengers were 17 Britons, and smaller numbers of foreigners from France, Italy, Portugal, Ireland and Spain.

The boat, which was also carrying four crew, and had just left Padang Bai port in eastern Bali on Thursday morning when the blast occurred.

"The explosion happened five minutes after the boat departed," local police chief Sugeng Sudarso told AFP, adding the vessel had been about 200 metres (yards) from the port.</s>An explosion on a speedboat in Bali left two foreigners dead and 18 other tourists injured Thursday, sparking dramatic scenes as rescuers rushed to haul stunned and bloodied holidaymakers off the vessel.

Dazed passengers, many covered in cuts and bruises, were taken to medical centres on the Indonesian holiday island after the blast, with TV footage showing them being carried on stretchers to ambulances and lying in hospital beds.

An Austrian woman was killed along with a second female foreigner, whose nationality was still being verified. Nationals from Briton, France, Italy, Portugal, Ireland and Spain were also on the boat at the time of the blast.

It appeared to be an accident with the explosion occurring in the fuel tank. The bomb squad was initially deployed to the scene on an island that has suffered bloody Islamist militant attacks in the past, but authorities quickly ruled out an attack.

Indonesia has a poor maritime safety record and regularly suffers fatal boat accidents but serious incidents around Bali — which attracts millions of foreign visitors each year — are rare.

The speedboat, which was carrying some 30 foreign tourists and four crew, had just left Padang Bai port in eastern Bali on Thursday morning when the blast occurred.

 “The explosion happened five minutes after the boat departed,” local police chief Sugeng Sudarso told AFP, adding the vessel had been about 200 metres (yards) from the port.

 One woman died from head injuries soon after the blast while the Austrian woman died later in hospital, he said.

Sudarso said he believed a malfunctioning battery near the fuel tank may have caused the accident.

“Based on the testimony (from passengers) and from what I saw at the scene, the explosion came from the fuel tank,” he said.

“Above it was a battery, maybe there was a short circuit that affected the fuel tank.”

The British embassy in Jakarta said it was providing assistance to those affected by the explosion.

The Indonesian archipelago of more than 17,000 islands is heavily dependent on ferry services but the industry has a poor safety record and fatal accidents are common.

Last year, dozens of tourists were injured when small explosions hit a ferry crossing between Bali and the neighbouring holiday island of Lombok.

The explosions, determined to be an accident, were thought to have come from the fuel tank of the ferry, which was carrying 129 passengers, most of them tourists.

However fears have also been growing in Indonesia that radicals who have headed to fight with the Islamic State group in the Middle East could encourage supporters back home to mount attacks, or may do so themselves on their return.

In January, a gun and suicide bomb attack claimed by IS in the capital Jakarta left four attackers and four civilians dead.

Bali has been attacked by Islamic radicals before. In 2002, more than 200 people, mostly foreign tourists, were killed in bombings on the island.

A sustained crackdown following the Bali bombings had weakened the most dangerous networks but IS has proved a potent new rallying cry for the country’s extremists.

A pocket of Hinduism in Muslim-majority Indonesia, Bali attracts millions of foreign visitors every year due to its palm-fringed, tropical beaches and picture-postcard temples.</s>A Spanish woman on her honeymoon was killed in an explosion on a Bali tourist boat that left another foreigner dead and about 20 injured, officials said Friday.

The blast hit the speedboat carrying about 35 mostly European tourists shortly after it departed the Indonesian holiday island Thursday, smashing the rear window and sending debris flying through the vessel.

Officials say it was an accident likely caused by a problem with the fuel tank, and ruled out foul play on the island that has been hit by bloody Islamist militant bombings in the past.

An Austrian woman died soon after the explosion. A second tourist died later from her injuries in hospital and authorities confirmed Friday the victim was a 29-year-old Spanish woman, whose husband was also hurt in the blast.

Vanesa Pascual and her 31-year-old husband, who lived near Madrid, had been on honeymoon in Bali following their wedding at the start of September, according to local authorities in Spain.

"I can confirm that a Spanish woman died," Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo told Spanish television. "Her husband is being operated on."

A total of 23 foreign tourists were injured in the blast on the boat, which was also carrying nationals from countries including Britain, France, Italy, Portugal and Ireland.

The speedboat, which was carrying four crew, had just left Padang Bai port in Bali on Thursday morning en route to the holiday island of Gili Trawangan when the blast occurred.

On Friday Bali police were examining the scene of the accident and questioning the boat crew and some of the foreign passengers.

Police spokesman Anak Agung Ngurah Sedana said they were trying to determine the cause of the accident and assess whether negligence was to blame.

The Indonesian archipelago of more than 17,000 islands is heavily dependent on ferry services but the industry has a poor safety record and fatal accidents are common.

Last year, dozens of tourists were injured when small explosions hit a ferry crossing between Bali and the neighbouring holiday island of Lombok.

A pocket of Hinduism in Muslim-majority Indonesia, Bali attracts millions of foreign visitors every year due to its palm-fringed, tropical beaches and picture-postcard temples.</s>Two Irish people are understood to have been on board a tourist boat in Bali which was hit by an explosion on Thursday.

Initial reports from local police said the ferry carrying 35 tourists between the Indonesian resort islands of Bali and Lombok on Thursday killed two people, an Indonesian and a Dutch national, and injured 13.

However, subsequent reports from the scene said a German woman was killed in the blast and 20 people were injured when the ferry blew up near a port in the east of the island. It added that more than 40 people were on board the Gili Cat 2 ferry.

The Irish tourists on board the boat are not believed to have been injured in the blast.

A spokesman for the Department of Foreign Affairs said they were aware of the incident but there had been no request for consular assistance. He added that there was “no immediate concern for any Irish citizens” caught up in the incident but that department officials would be available to assist if required.

All the passengers on board the ferry were evacuated with the injured being treated at a local medical centre, Karangasem police chief Bambang Sudarso told reporters.

“One of the passengers died from bad injuries after being hit by boat debris that also caused injuries in others,” he said. There were unconfirmed reports that a second person had died.

The boat was travelling to the small island of Gili Trawangan, off neighbouring Lombok, and was carrying tourists from the Republic of Ireland, Britain, Australia, Germany, France and South Korea.

Police are now questioning the boat’s captain.

Images circulated on social media appeared to show bloodied passengers in lifeboats and others being helped by crew and locals on the Indonesian island.

The UK foreign office said it is assisting British holidaymakers affected by the explosion.

A faulty battery may have sparked the blast, which happened just 200 metres from the departure port of Padang Bai harbour, reports suggested.

Bali and neighbouring Lombok are two of Indonesia’s most popular holiday destinations.</s>DENPASAR, Indonesia: An explosion hit a tourist boat as it departed the Indonesian resort island of Bali on Thursday, killing one foreign woman and injuring 19 other foreigners, police said.

The blast in the speedboat carrying about 30 passengers appeared to have happened in the fuel tank, said police, adding it was not caused by a bomb. Indonesia has a poor maritime safety record and there were similar incidents in the past where no foul play was detected.

Authorities said the woman killed on the boat, which was heading for the nearby holiday island of Gili Trawangan, was a foreigner but that they were verifying her identity before releasing more details.

The dead woman and the 19 injured tourists were taken to medical centers on the island, with TV footage showing dazed, bloodied passengers lying on hospital beds and being carried into ambulances on stretchers.

A manifest provided by authorities showed that among the passengers were 17 Britons, and smaller numbers of foreigners from France, Italy, Portugal, Ireland and Spain.

The boat, which was also carrying four crew, and had just left Padang Bai port in eastern Bali on Thursday morning when the blast occurred.

“The explosion happened five minutes after the boat departed,” local police chief Sugeng Sudarso told Agence-France Presse, adding the vessel had been about 200 meters (yards) from the port.

Not caused by a bomb

 Teams of police and the bomb squad were initially deployed to investigate but Sudarso later ruled out a bomb as the cause.

“Based on the testimony [from passengers]and from what I saw at the scene, the explosion came from the fuel tank,” he said.

“Above it was a battery, maybe there was a short circuit that affected the fuel tank,” he added.

The Indonesian archipelago of more than 17,000 islands is heavily dependent on ferry services but the industry has a poor safety record and fatal accidents are common.

Last year, dozens of tourists were injured when small explosions hit a ferry crossing between Bali and the neighboring holiday island of Lombok.

The explosions were an accident and thought to have come from the fuel tank of the ferry, which was carrying 129 passengers, most of them tourists.

However, fears have also been growing in Indonesia that radicals who have headed to fight with the Islamic State (IS) group in the Middle East could encourage supporters back home to launch attacks, or may launch attacks themselves on their return.

In January, a gun and suicide bomb attack claimed by IS in the capital Jakarta left four attackers and four civilians dead.

Bali has been attacked by Islamic radicals before. In 2002, more than 200 people, mostly foreign tourists, were killed in bombings on the island.

A sustained crackdown following the Bali bombings had weakened the most dangerous networks but IS has proved a potent new rallying cry for the country’s extremists.

A pocket of Hinduism in Muslim-majority Indonesia, Bali attracts millions of foreign visitors every year because pf its palm-fringed, tropical beaches and picture-postcard temples.
An explosion on a tourist speed boat kills two people and injures 20 others shortly after departing from the Indonesian port of Padangbai in Karangasem, Bali.