JAKARTA, July 31 (Xinhua) -- One person was killed and nine others wounded as a ship caught fire in Karimun district of Indonesia's Kepulauan Riau province on Wednesday, a senior disaster official said.

The inferno happened when Ro-Ro KMP Sembilang ship was being repaired in a shipyard operated by PT Karimun Marine Shipyard, head of emergency unit of the provincial disaster management agency Hardin Nafii said.

"The fire was triggered after sparks, resulted from welding activities on the deck of the ship, reached tinner (liquid containing oil) there," he told Xinhua from Kepulauan Riau province.

All the victims were rushed to two nearby hospitals, and four out the nine wounded were in critical condition receiving treatment in intensive care units, Hardin said.

The total number of people inside the ship remained unknown, and the fire was still engulfing the ship, he added.