KOTA BARU, March 12 — Salesman Albert Wong was so touched by stories about those affected by Flight MH370 that he drove eight hours from Kuala Lumpur to Kota Baru to lend a hand.
Wong, 39, said he hoped to join a Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) vessel or local fishermen to look for the Boeing 777-200.
He said he was not related to any of the 239 people on board, including the crew, but merely doing what he thought was right.
He felt bad that people in China were of the opinion that the Malaysian authorities were not doing enough to search for the plane.
Wong said the authorities, in his opinion, were doing their best.
“This is a lot harder than I thought,” he said.
“The MMEA did not say if civilians could join the search and rescue operations, and many of the fishermen were currently resting and will not go out to sea until next week,” he told The Malay Mail yesterday shortly after arriving at the MMEA office in Tok Bali.
Wong, who took leave for the purpose, said it would take at least 10 hours by the fishermen’s boat to reach the search area.
He had initially planned to sleep in his car and shower in petrol stations because of his limited budget.
However, a journalist who heard of his situation offered a hotel room for him to stay over in Tok Bali.
