LANGKAWI: Search and rescue (SAR) teams have expanded their coverage to 272.78 square nautical miles as the operation entered its third day to locate some undocumented immigrants still missing after the boat tragedy near the Malaysia-Thailand maritime border.
The joint mission between Malaysian and Thai authorities has so far recovered 21 bodies — 12 in Malaysian waters and nine in Thailand — while all 13 survivors were found on the Malaysian side.
A Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency spokesman said the operation resumed at 7.30am today, supported by five MMEA vessels and an aircraft.
Also deployed are assets from the marine police, Royal Malaysian Navy, Fisheries Department, Fire and Rescue Department and the Civil Defence Force.
Authorities believe the migrants departed Buthidaung, Myanmar, nearly a month ago on a “mother vessel” carrying about 300 people.
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As it neared the Thailand–Malaysia maritime boundary, the group was split into three boats — the main vessel and two smaller ones.
One of the smaller boats, which carried about 70 people, is believed to have capsized, leaving many still unaccounted for.
The remaining group of roughly 230 migrants from the original voyage has yet to be located.
The tragedy comes amid the ongoing conflict in Myanmar that continues to force Rohingya families onto overcrowded, unseaworthy boats in pursuit of safety.
The United Nations has long described the Rohingya as among the “most persecuted people in the world.”
© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd
