SAR for missing tugboat crewmen in Kinabatangan continues

SANDAKAN: A search and rescue (SAR) operation for three tugboat crew members who went missing during torrential rain in the waters of Kuala Kinabatangan Besar since early Wednesday (Jan 13) morning continued yesterday despite ongoing bad weather.

Deputy Operations Director of the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) Sandakan Zone, Commander Ahmad Firdaus Shaari said strong waves also made the search difficult for the nine assets of various agencies deployed in the operation.

“We (MMEA and rescue agencies) are working hard with the Marine Department (Jabatan Laut) and the tugboat company to salvage the vessel, which we believe capsized along with the three crew members trapped inside.

“The SAR operation is divided into six search areas covering 211 square nautical miles,” he told reporters when awaiting the arrival of two crew members, who escaped the mishap, at the Sandakan MMEA jetty here yesterday.

In the 4 am incident, the tugboat known as “Ever Winner” carrying four crew members, including its captain, is believed to have sunk while towing a barge known as “Ever Eternity”, which had one crew on board, from Kinabatangan to Sandakan.

However, MMEA was only informed of the incident at 4.20 pm that day and a SAR operation was activated an hour later.

The missing crew members were boat captain Mohamad Mal, 49 and crewmen Mohd Hafiz Isyra Nagrah, 22 and Azlan Hassan, 23.

Meanwhile, one of the rescued crew, the tugboat's chief engineer Asman Mohamad, 31, who is the son of the captain, said he was on the boat deck when the vessel decided to turn back because bad weather was preventing it from continuing its journey to Sandakan.

“As the boat was turning (back to Kinabatangan), I tried to get inside the engine room, but the door was jammed. Then, a strong wave hit the boat from behind and I was tossed overboard.

“I wasn't wearing a life jacket, but I had managed to grab a lifebuoy and I clung to it for seven hours in the waves until I drifted to shore. The others (rest of the crew) were still inside as the boat was turning over,” he said.

Asman said while at shore, he noticed the barge about 500 feet (152 m) away, and its crew member Roslie Antala, 48 waving to him to get on it.

He also saw the tugboat's liferaft with food supply washed ashore and that sustained them until they were rescued.

Roslie said he saw the tugboat making a turn back to Kinabatangan around 3 am, but an hour later, the tugbot's lights went off and there was no more sound coming from its engine.