KUANTAN: The crew members of a tugboat, including five Indonesians, went missing after their vessel was involved in a collision with a merchant ship about nine nautical miles off Tanjung Gelang at 5am yesterday.
Only one crew member,
30-year-old Martin Sembiring
from Indonesia, made it to safety after he was rescued by fisher-
men.
Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) Eastern Region enforcement chief Datuk Nasir Adam said the tugboat with seven crew members capsized after the collision.
He said a search-and-rescue (SAR) operation, which began at noon, found debris, an oil slick and a life buoy 4.2 nautical miles from the scene.
“As at 5pm, only one person was saved. Among those still missing are the Indonesian captain, an engineer and a Malaysian crew member,” he said yesterday.
He said the SAR operation involved two MMEA patrol ships and an aircraft, three boats from the marine police and a vessel from the Royal Malaysian Navy.
“We are also getting assistance from five divers to locate the victims.”
He said the boat, registered in Kuala Terengganu, was on its way to Kuala Pahang, Pekan, when the incident occurred.