LANGKAWI BOAT CAPSIZE: ELEVEN BODIES SENT TO HOSPITAL, TWO MORE SURVIVORS RESCUED

LANGKAWI, Nov 11 (Bernama) — The search and rescue operation for victims of the Langkawi boat capsize entered its third day this morning, with the search radius expanded to 272.78 square nautical miles since commencing at 7.30 am.

The Malaysia-Thailand joint operation was launched following the capsize of a boat near Tarutao Island; it was one of three vessels suspected of carrying approximately 300 undocumented migrants.

Langkawi police chief ACP Khairul Azhar Nuruddin said the bodies of eleven victims have been transferred from Sultanah Maliha Hospital to Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital in Alor Setar for post-mortem examinations this afternoon.

He explained that the bodies were moved by truck to a Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) jetty in Bukit Malut, then by police boat to Kuala Perlis, and finally by road to the final destination. 

He said, in the absence of any personal documentation, it has not been possible to confirm whether all of the deceased were of Rohingya ethnicity.

To date, the ongoing search and rescue operation for the capsized vessel has resulted in the recovery of sixteen bodies, while fourteen survivors have been located, with the Thai authorities recovering nine bodies so far in the waters off the Thailand-Malaysia maritime border. 

Meanwhile, a survivor, believed to be an ethnic Rohingya, was rescued today after reportedly surviving for four days by drinking river water on the coast of Tanjung Chincin.

The 18-year-old, identified as Iman Sharif, was found at approximately midday by a team from the Malaysian Fire and Rescue Department (JBPM), who were surveying the local waters.

The weak and listless teenager was promptly provided with food and drink before subsequently giving an account of his ordeal in Bengali via a telephone call with an interpreter. 

Iman said he was one of approximately 290 to 300 undocumented migrants who initially boarded a vessel from Myanmar, and later transferred to smaller boats upon reaching the Malaysia-Thailand waters.

It is understood that he swam to the coast after the boat he was on, carrying about 70 people, had capsized en route to Malaysian waters. 

Iman stated that his family, who are in a refugee camp in Bangladesh, arranged his passage through a syndicate that was to be paid only upon his safe arrival in Thailand, though he did not know the specific amount.

JBPM Zone 4 chief (Langkawi) Mohd Zamri Abdul Ghani said his team had spotted the teenager as they neared the coast during a survey of the area. 

“We couldn’t bring the boat closer to the shore due to the shallow and rocky seabed. So we threw a rope and pulled him in,” Mohd Zamri explained.

In a separate incident, a fisherman from Kampung Sungai Menghulu rescued a survivor of the boat capsize last Saturday after discovering a woman clinging to a piece of plank near the island.

Muhd Azham Azmi, 34, reported that he and his companions spotted what appeared to be a person, a red object in the water, while they were lowering their nets approximately two nautical miles from the shore.

They subsequently contacted the MMEA and handed over the woman to the personnel who arrived at the location 30 minutes later.

— BERNAMA