CNY Holiday Outing Turns Tragic - What was supposed to be a leisure boat trip for a group of 28 Chinese tourists to an island west of Kota Kinabalu turned into a nightmare when their catamaran sank in the South China Sea on the first day of the Chinese New Year.
Twenty Chinese tourists and two Malaysian crew members were rescued from the sea near Pulau Tiga off Labuan.
Three of the tourists, including a woman, have died.
Five Chinese nationals and one crew member are still missing.
The sea was believed to be choppy with waves reaching up to three to four metres high when the incident happened.
The catamaran had left the Tanjung Aru jetty at about 9am on Saturday.
The group, which included three crewmen, was supposed to arrive at Pulau Mengalum, about 56km west of Kota Kinabalu two hours later.
The island is known for its beautiful beaches and is also a magnet for divers.
Pulau Tiga is about 53km away from Pulau Mengalum, and 50km from Tanjung Aru jetty.
The boat was reported missing at about 9.50pm by its owners who said that it had not reached the island. It is not known why the report was lodged late.
Despite the strong waves and bad weather, a massive search and rescue operation covering an area of 400 nautical square miles, was launched by the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) with help from the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF), Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) and the police.
Sabah Police Commissioner Datuk Ramli Din said the vessel skipper Sharizal Shalian, 25, and a crewman Amran Abdul, 38, were rescued earlier.
All 22 victims, he said, were pulled from the sea between Pulau Tiga and the Samarang offshore petroleum rig.
He said the search and rescue for the remaining six people is being intensified with the area expanded from 400 to 1,400 nautical miles.
He said the police believed the catamaran sank at about 10am on Saturday after encountering rough seas on the way to the island.
“We will be investigating if there is any element of negligence involved in this incident,” he added.
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