MUAR: Rescuers yesterday found two of the 14 crewmen trapped in a sand-dredger that capsized off Johor two days ago and expressed optimism the rest can also be brought out alive.
The two men, both Chinese nationals, were rescued at 2pm and 4pm, respectively, in a dehydrated state and have been sent to the Sultanah Fatimah Specialist Hospital here.
“The divers found them in the engine room not far from one another.
“They were removed from the vessel and brought to the Pantai Leka fishermen’s jetty,” said Capt (Maritime) Sanifah Yusof, deputy director (operations) of the Southern Region Maritime Malaysia.
One crewman, also believed to be a Chinese national, was found dead and three others were rescued following the capsizing of JBB Rong Chang 8 that had 18 crewmen, one of them Malaysian and 17 foreigners, on board last Wednesday.
The remaining 14 crewmen were unaccounted for and were believed to have been trapped in the vessel.
Sanifah said the rescuers were now focused on searching for the 12 crewmen believed to be still trapped in the vessel at a location 12 nautical miles off Tanjung Tohor here.
“We believe they can be brought out alive because the whole vessel is not filled with water, leaving enough room and air for them to stay alive,” he said.
He also said that the rescuers still kept hearing knocking sounds from within the vessel, indicating that there were crewmen trapped in the vessel and that they were alive.
Meanwhile, Muar District health officer Dr Noorhida Ujang said the office had set aside enough equipment to attend to the 12 missing crewmen once they were brought out of the vessel.
“There is a good chance that all of them are alive because every sailor is trained on survival at sea. There may be enough fresh water on board which they can drink a little at a time for energy,” she said. — Bernama