Boat capsize: Fishernman recalls seeing victims flailing hands for help

HUTAN MELINTANG: Last Thursday, fisherman Heng Lee Hua must have thought he was 'seeing things' in the sea while returning from a fishing trip in the waters off Tanjung Sauh, Sabak Bernam.
The sight that greeted him was like none he had experienced in his 20 years of fishing out at sea – several people flailing their hands and screaming for help as they desperately tried to keep afloat in the water.
"I was returning to Hutan Melintang when I spotted a woman holding on to a body to keep afloat.
"She was very weak and even appeared lifeless. Initially, my friends and I saw only that victim but we were shocked to see many more as we approached where the woman was.
"In our confusion, we pulled all victims, dead or alive, into our boat," Heng, 45, told reporters at the search and rescue operation centre at the Hutan Melintang jetty here today.
He said despite being tired, he and his fellow fishermen were proud to have rescued the victims, adding he later contacted the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency to alert them of the incident.
So far, the bodies of 19 women and five men have been recovered, while 20 people, including a woman were rescued after the boat ferrying 70 passengers capsized in Selangor waters on Thursday morning.
The 13-metre long boat overturned while on the way from Kuala Sungai Bernam to Tanjong Balai, Indonesia. It sank about nine nautical miles southwest of Tanjong Sauh. – Bernama