By Xinhua
Kuala Lumpur : Eleven sailors are feared drowned after the timber-laden ship they were sailing on sank in Brunei Bay near Malaysia’s Labuan island, local media reported Monday.
The Thailand-registered MV Emerald left Kota Kinabalu Port in Malaysia’s eastern Sabah state Dec 24 and was heading for Bangkok when rough waves and strong winds caused the ship to sink.
The Malaysian maritime enforcement agency was notified of the incident after Brunei authorities rescued two crewmembers 30 nautical miles from Brunei Dec 28.
The two rescued sailors are currently in Brunei.
Search and rescue operations were ongoing for the remaining seven Myanmarese and four Thais in waters close to Labuan and in Brunei Bay within a 30 to 50 nautical mile radius, Malaysian First Admiral Ahmad Puzi Abdul Kahar said Sunday.
“We were notified by Brunei maritime authorities and are working with the Brunei Maritime Control Centre to look for the missing sailors,” the New Straits Times quoted him as saying.
Other agencies involved in the search operation were the Malaysian Navy, Air Force and Marine Police.
The cargo ship laden with sawn timber and plywood was scheduled to arrive in Bangkok Sunday.