Body of missing crew of MV Geos found

MIRI: The body of missing Malaysian crew on board the drilling vessel MV Geos has been found by the Search and Rescue (SAR) team around 1.45pm yesterday.

The victim has been identified as 31year-old Mohamad Saiful Ashnar from Negeri Sembilan.

Miri Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency District 13 (MMEA DM13) director Captain Md Fauzi Othman in an interview after handing over the body to police at a jetty in Coco Cabana yesterday said Mohamad Saiful’s body was recovered by the Special Tactical Operation Rescue Malaysia (Storm) team from Zone 6 Fire and Rescue Department (Bomba).

“The Storm team had to enter the vessel to locate the victim and later at 1.45pm found Mohamad Saiful’s body in one of the rooms next to the engine room,” he said.

When asked on the condition of the body when found, Md Fauzi said that there was slight burn but it was still in good condition.

The SAR operation that entered its second day was led by MMEA using its vessel KM Siakap and a boat, Penggalang 23.

Bomba sent four Storm personnel as there was gas leak in the area while Petronas Carigali Sdn Bhd sent three vessels; namely Neo Petro 18, MP Perdana Frontier and MP Nautical Aleesya to assist in the SAR operation.

The SAR team narrowed down the search area yesterday after searching in the water on the first day of the incident.

On Tuesday around 3.15am, the vessel which was doing drilling operation just five nautical miles from Kuala Baram here caught fire.

An explosion at the engine room in the vessel was said to be the cause of the fire.

The 38 crew members who survived the incident, including two who suffered burns and injuries on the face, jumped into the sea to save themselves.