At least four people have died and 38 others are missing after a ferry sank en route to Indonesia’s Bali island, authorities said.

The KMP Tunu Pratama Jaya was carrying 65 people when it sank before midnight on Wednesday in the Bali Strait, according to the search and rescue agency in Surabaya on Thursday.

Twenty-three people have been rescued so far, but operations have been hindered by strong winds, high waves and powerful currents.

The ferry was travelling from Ketapang port in Banyuwangi Regency, East Java, to Gilimanuk seaport in Jembrana Regency on Bali island.

President Prabowo Subianto, currently on a visit to Saudi Arabia, has ordered an immediate emergency response, Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya said in a statement.

He said the cause of the accident was "bad weather."