KOTA TINGGI: Two men on a fishing excursion are missing after their boat capsized in choppy seas about 500 metres from the Sultan Abu Bakar maritime base at Middle Rocks near here on Sunday.
Singaporean-born Malaysian Chang Chuong Kuok, 51, and Tan Soon Heng, 35, from Johor Baru, were spotted clinging to the side of their overturned boat at about 4.20pm by personnel at the nearby maritime base.
But by the time a search and rescue (SAR) team from the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) reached the location after receiving an alert on the incident, the two anglers had disappeared.
MMEA southern region deputy director (operation) Maritime Captain Sanifah Yusof said that rescue divers are currently scouring the area for the two men.
He added that the anglers’ family members have been notified, and that they are waiting for updates on the SAR at an MMEA forward operations base set up in Tanjung Pengelih near Pengerang, Kota Tinggi.
"Both anglers began their fishing trip on Sunday. They had possibly taken a boat from Pasir Gudang after setting off from Johor Baru,” said Sanifah.