CHUKAI: The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) has rescued two anglers early on Tuesday (March 17) morning after they spent 11 hours adrift at sea after their boat engine failed in Kemaman waters.
Kemaman Maritime Zone director Cmdr (M) Abdul Halim Hamzah said the MMEA received a distress call at 12.30am and immediately launched a search-and-rescue operation.
"An MMEA asset was deployed at 1.18 am. Following a coordinated search, both victims and their vessel were successfully located and secured at 3am," he said in a statement on Tuesday.
The victims, Abdul Hafiz Imran Abd Latif, 39, from Dungun, and Ahmad Arif Tajudin Rosli, 29, from the Paka fishermen's jetty, had gone fishing on Monday (March 17) but their boat's propeller malfunctioned at about 4pm, he said.
The victims managed to get a mobile signal at 9pm and contacted their family to report the situation.
"The family subsequently contacted the 999 emergency line," he said, adding that both men were found safe and did not sustain any injuries.
Abdul Halim said the search was hampered by strong sea currents, which caused the boat to drift away from its initially reported coordinates. – Bernama
