Handout photo shows rescuers transporting the body up to the Sebuyau jetty.
KUCHING (July 31): The search and rescue (SAR) team today recovered one body inside the cabin of the refloated MV Tung Sung at 12.14pm today.
Malaysia Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) Sarawak director First Admiral Zin Azman Md Yunus said the body was discovered after inspections were carried out by the Fire and Rescue Department (Bomba) hazmat team.
He added the inspections were done to determine the safety of the vessel and to detect any harmful gases present in it.
“After ensuring the vessel was safe, the search was then conducted – leading to the discovery of one body in the vessel’s cabin.
“The body was then brought to the Sebuyau jetty before being handed over to the police, after which the body was then brought to the Sarawak General Hospital to confirm its identity and for further investigation,” he said in a statement tonight.
Meanwhile, Zin Azman said the SAR on the vessel had to be temporarily postponed due to ongoing water pumping work on the vessel’s engines, but said the search for the remaining three victims will continue after the water has been pumped out.
He said during the search in the vessel’s engine room, rescuers had yet to find any discoveries on the remaining victims.
The SAR operation onboard the vessel ended at 6.30pm.
“The SAR operation will resume if there are any new clues, and assets from the rescue team will carry out the search during the routine operations of their respective agencies,” he said.
Since the start of the SAR operation on July 20, this is the fifth body out of eight crewmen found. On July 22, a group of fishermen found four bodies floating some 15 nautical miles northwest of Pulau Burung.
Onboard the MV Tung Sung were Chieng Siew Ngiek, Wong Hua Wu, and Stimba Chuit from Sibu; four Myanmar nationals identified as That Min July, Ye Lin Htet, Hla Win Tun, and Tun Lin Oo; as well as Indonesian Lido Ali Purwanto.
