KUCHING, Dec 13 — An Indonesian skipper endured a tense ordeal when the fishing vessel he was operating drifted for nearly 10 days before washing ashore at Telaga Air Jetty due to engine failure on Friday.
Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) Sarawak director First Admiral (Maritime) Mohd Khairi Abd Aziz said the incident was first noticed by Kampung Telaga Air villagers, who immediately contacted the Maritime Rescue Sub Centre (MRSC) Kuching after seeing the vessel approaching the jetty uncontrollably.
Upon receiving the report, a team from MMEA Sarawak was deployed to the location, where they found the skipper on board the vessel in safe but exhausted condition.
“Further inspection revealed that the vessel had run out of fuel and suffered damage to its gearbox system as well as its navigation equipment.
“This situation caused the skipper to drift and prevented him from returning to his home country,” he said in a statement.
Following this, MRSC Kuching lodged a police report at the Batu Kawa Police Station before handing the skipper over to the representative of the Consulate General of the Republic of Indonesia for further action. — The Borneo Post
