By: Aida Aziz
LUMUT: A total of 23 people believed to be undocumented Indonesian migrants were rescued, while another 14 are feared missing after the boat they were travelling in sank in the waters off Pulau Pangkor yesterday morning.
Perak Maritime Director, Maritime Captain Mohamad Shukri Khotob, said authorities received a report at about 5.30 am from a local fisherman who found the victims floating at sea and requested assistance.
“The Perak Maritime State Headquarters activated a search and rescue operation following the incident involving a boat believed to be carrying undocumented Indonesian migrants.
“The SAR operation was activated at 6 am, with KM Gagah and Benteng 1203 deployed to the location for search efforts, assisted by agencies including the Marine Police Force (PPM), the Royal Malaysian Navy (TLDM), as well as the local fishing community.
“A local fishing vessel successfully rescued 23 victims comprising 16 Indonesian men and seven women,” he said on Tuesday.
He added that preliminary investigations found that a total of 37 undocumented migrants were believed to have been on board the boat.
So far, 23 victims have been rescued, while the remaining victims have yet to be located, and SAR operations are actively ongoing.
Meanwhile, all rescued victims were brought to the PPM Jetty in Kampung Acheh before being handed over to authorities for further investigation at the Manjung District Police Headquarters.
“Initial investigations found that they were believed to have departed from Kisaran, Indonesia, on May 9 heading to Malaysia, with several intended destinations believed to include Penang, Terengganu, Selangor and Kuala Lumpur.
“The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency will remain committed to carrying out search and rescue operations together with relevant agencies to ensure all victims believed to be involved are located.
“The public, especially the maritime community, is urged to channel any information should they come across victims or suspicious objects at sea,” he added.
