KUCHING: The search for the last missing victim of the Tanjung Sipang fishing boat capsizing resumed today (Dec 30) following new leads.
The operation, which was suspended on Dec 27 after five days yielded no results, is focused on locating 64-year-old Chaloem Sonada, the Thai skipper of the ill-fated vessel.
“The operation was reactivated after receiving information that local fishermen discovered a body at Sungai Sampun estuary in Asajaya at 12.23 pm on Sunday,” said Civil Defence Force (APM) Kuching district officer Major Wan Khairul Zakwan Wan Tajudden in a statement.
“We believe the body likely belongs to the sixth and final victim of the fishing boat tragedy,” he added.
The search is being conducted via the Asajaya land route due to low sea water levels.
On Dec 17, a fishing boat carrying six crew members – three Cambodians, two Indonesians and one Thai national – departed Tanjung Bako jetty at 7 pm.
Around 8 pm on Dec 19, the crew reported to the boat’s owner that water had entered the engine room due to a leak.
Efforts to pump out the water failed when the pump engine malfunctioned.
By 2 am on Dec 20, all six crew members donned life jackets and jumped into the rough sea.
Five crew members were later rescued.
Chaloem remains missing.
