KOTA KINABALU: Five crewmembers of a fishing boat had been drifting after it broke down in Sabah’s west coast waters had been found alive, while another two are still missing.
Yesterday, it was reported that a trading ship stumbled upon the boat which broke down some 11 nautical miles east of Pulau Mengalum on Wednesday.
However, it was unable to provide assistance to crewmembers due to bad weather.
Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) then mounted a search and rescue (SAR) operation after being alerted.
"The first victim, Noradin Majiki (38) was found yesterday (Thursday) about five nautical miles from Pulau Mantanani Kecil, drifting on a piece of log.
"We picked up another six crewmembers at the Pulau Mantanani Kecil - who swam towards the island - at 10.30pm after receiving information from the Remote Sensor Site security personnel there.
"The search continues for two other missing; boat owner Iman @ Dimas Tampas and crewmember Moso Nasi," said district maritime director First Admiral Adam Aziz in a press conference here.
The group initially left for fishing on December 17 from Pulau Gaya heading towards Pulau Mengalum, when their vessel malfunctioned and its engine could not be restarted.