Cook: They were screaming for help

Cowering in fear: Tourists taking cover during the kidnapping incident at the Singamata Adventures and Reef Resort by suspected Abu Sayyaf rebels off the Semporna coast in Sabah. This picture was taken with a mobile phone by one of the tourists. There were more than 50 Chinese tourists staying at the resor t at the time. — EPA

SEMPORNA: Screams for help were heard as gunmen stormed an island resort in Sabah’s coastal paradise of Semporna, grabbing two women – a Chinese tourist and a Filipino resort worker – before escaping to the troubled southern Philippines islands.

Gao Huayun, a 29-year-old from Shanghai, and 40-year-old Marcy Dayawan @ Mimi were discovered missing after the seven intruders armed with M14 rifles fled in a speedboat towards international waters.