At least 13 people died and scores more were rescued when an Indonesian ferry carrying more than 100 passengers caught fire and exploded in the country's east, the official Antara news agency reported on Saturday.

It was unclear if any of the passengers aboard the KM Kenangan were missing or if the ship sank.

Antara said the ship caught fire about 15 minutes after it left the port of Baubau in Southeast Sulawesi province on Friday night. It then exploded, the agency added.

Other boats in the area came quickly to the rescue, Antara said, adding passengers were lucky the ferry was still close to Baubau, which lies 1,775 km east of Jakarta.

It was unclear how many passengers were injured. The vessel had a passenger capacity of 200 people.

The ship was on its way from Baubau, on Buton island off the south-east coast of Sulawesi, to a nearby island.

At least 69 people have been rescued, but the ship's captain and one other crew member are among those unaccounted for.
Rescue workers are continuing to search for survivors as the exact number of passengers is not known.

Fewer than 50 people were listed on the ship's manifest.

Abdullah Arfah, a manager at the Baubau port, told AFP news agency the blast was an accident and came from the engine room. He was unable to say what had caused it.

Shipping accidents are common in Indonesia, where safety regulations are poorly enforced and ship owners say maintenance costs are too high.

Boats are the commonest means of transport between islands in the archipelago.

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At least 13 people died and scores more were rescued when an Indonesian ferry carrying more than 100 passengers caught fire and exploded in the country's east