SANDAKAN: The Royal Malaysian Navy’s (TLDM) Naval Region 2 (Mawilla 2) assisted in bringing back 11 Malaysian who were rescued by a ship’s crew after their boat had capsized and drifted into the Philippines waters.
According to a Mawilla 2 statement, here today, one of the victims, Siti Naun Osman, 25, had informed that she and 10 others - five women, two men and three children - were on their way to Semporna from Tawau on the night of March 29.
“However, the boat capsized after being struck by strong waves during bad weather. The victims had to cling on to the overturned boat for almost three hours before being rescued by a passing ship.
“The Mawilla 2 Operation room received information from the Maritime Rescue Sub-Centre (MRSC) in Kota Kinabalu to notify that a passing ship, Tomini Dynasty, had found the 11 Malaysians in the Sibutu waters, in the Philippines,“ said the statement.
The TLDM’s (KD) Paus vessel that was involved in ‘Operasi Pasir Selatan’ around the Tanjung Labian waters was deployed to bring home the rescued victims from the ship that was located at about 8 nautical miles from Tanjung Labian.
The victims brought back by the KD Paus vessel were taken to Pulau Tambisan and handed over to the Marine Police in Lahad Datu for further action. - Bernama
