MERSING: A fun family outing turned tragic when two teenage siblings drowned while picnicking at Pulau Mentigi beach, some 19 nautical miles from the Mersing coastline here.
Mersing maritime zone director, maritime commander Suhaizan Saadin, said the incident prompted a search and rescue operation by the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) on Monday evening (June 2).
“The Malaysia Rescue Sub Centre (MRSC) Johor alerted about the incident at around 4.25pm following a distress call to MERS 999 reporting that two individuals were believed to have drowned during recreational activities at the beach.
“We immediately deployed a patrol boat to the location after receiving the alert,” he said here on Monday night.
Suhaizan added that the first victim, identified as 15-year-old Nur Awatif Udaima Mohd Hisam, was found at the site of her drowning and was retrieved by members of the local island community at approximately 4.30pm.
He said rescuers, including those onboard MMEA patrol boat and members of the island community, expanded the search area in hopes of locating the second missing victim.
“Tragically, the second victim, 13-year-old Ahmad Uwais Al Qarni Mohd Hisam, was found at around 6.30pm by community members who were conducting underwater search efforts.
“Both bodies have been transported to the Pulau Tinggi jetty after being retrieved and were then handed over to the marine police to be brought to the Shahbandar Mersing jetty.
“From there, the bodies were taken to the hospital for further action,” he said, adding that he thanked all agencies, departments, and members of the island community who were involved in the operation.
When contacted, Mersing OCPD Supt Abdul Razak Abdullah Sani confirmed the incident and said the two bodies have been sent to Mersing Hospital for a post-mortem.
He said police have since classified the case as sudden death.
