Two drown when collecting cockles

KUNAK: A man and a woman died while five other persons survived when they were swept away by strong current while collecting cockles in the mangroves near Borneo Resort Farm near here on Saturday evening.

The group of foreign palm oil factory workers aged between 22 and 37 went to the area to find cockles when the water level suddenly rose up to their waists.

District police chief Superintendent M Nasaruddin M Nasir said the two victims were identified as Haslinda Abidin and Rolly Enning, both 25 years old.

“All of them were not aware of the tide rising quickly up to the waist and when they tried to save themselves, the strong current swept two of them away,” he said in a statement here yesterday.

He said the other five - Asdar Dahari, 22, Amran Haddise, 37, Rudy Hartono Bade, 25, Haryadi Amir, 36, and Frende Martin, 27 - were rescued by General Operations Force (GOF) members who heard their cries for help while patrolling in the area.

According to Nasaruddin, the Fire and Rescue Department could not immediately launch a search and rescue operation due to the strong current. All the victims were taken to the Kunak District Hospital for further treatment.

Meanwhile, the body of the victim who went missing was found by his family members about 10.20pm and taken to the hospital. Nasaruddin added that a post-mortem could not be conducted on the victim’s body as the family members wanted to expedite the burial.