KUCHING, Sept 10 — As of 3pm today, the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) have yet to detect the cargo ship Sah Lian, which was reported missing on September 7.
This was despite an announcement this morning that it had been found 23 nautical miles from Miri yesterday.
The Sarawak Region MMEA chief enforcement officer First Admiral Ismaili Bujang Pit said another cargo ship had contacted the owner of Sah Lian claiming it was drifting in the area at 10.45pm last night.
He said MMEA rushed to the location after being informed this morning but could not find the ship as of 3pm.
“We don’t have all the accurate information yet. The moment we find the ship, we will tow it to port, investigate the break down [sic], send the crew for treatment if necessary and then take down their statements.
“We just hope for the best,” he told a media conference at the Sarawak Region MMEA headquarters here, today.
He said the ship’s gearbox was damaged but it could not be confirmed until the ship was taken to Miri.
Ismaili said he ordered all assets operating in the three maritime districts of Kuching, Bintulu and Miri to look for the 13-crew ship, aided by a C-130 aircraft from Labuan, upon receiving the report on its disappearance on September 7.
He said, according to the manager of the shipping company, the last time the captain of the ship, Haryanto Iskandar, was contacted was on Sept 2.
At that point, he said the ship was in the waters of Tanjung Sirik, after it departed Kuching on Sept 2, and was scheduled to arrive in Limbang on Sept 5.
He said the ship was estimated to be worth RM1.5 million and it was carrying a cargo valued at RM1 million.
The captain of the ship was from Indonesia while the crew comprised Myanmar (five), India (four), Malaysians (three) and Indonesian (one), he added. — Bernama
