KUALA LUMPUR: The families of the 55 Malaysians who remain missing in the aftermath of the flash flooding in Nepal are now banking on the deployment of the Special Malaysia Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team (Smart) to the country to bring news of their loved ones.
Malaysia Solidarity: Families In Hope (MASFIH) representative Dr R Manivannan said that the families greatly appreciate the deployment after facing difficulties in securing approval from the Nepali government.
"After 11 days, we feel that the possibility of finding the Malaysians alive is growing slim, unless there are those stranded or taking shelter at certain locations that have yet to be identified. But till we have official confirmation, we will not lose hope," he said when contacted on Saturday (Sept 5).
Manivannan, who is waiting for news about his sibling, R Komathi, 48, said the families do realise that the Smart team will face a challenging search and rescue operation and hoped that they would use the information gathered by the families since day one of the tragedy, including photos, videos, GPS coordinates, communication records and last known locations of those missing.
Meanwhile, S Chandran, 63, a family member of another missing Malaysian, said they have yet to receive any new developments from the authorities about his sibling, Lingam Samikanu, 49.
"No developments; we are only waiting for information. The Foreign Ministry does keep in contact with us to provide updates, but so far there's nothing new," he said, adding that the deployment of Smart did help raise his family's hopes.
"I still have hope. I don't feel the loss of my sibling, so I am still confident and hope they can be found," he added.
There are still 55 Malaysians who are uncontactable after the flooding hit on Aug 26, while 77 were found to be safe in Tibet and Nepal and have been taken to Kathmandu to be processed before returning home to Malaysia.
The 11-member Smart team departed for Nepal today to assist search and rescue efforts there. – Bernama
