MUKAH: The search and rescue (SAR) operation to look for a missing Indonesian male Muslikin, 25, remained futile yesterday.
Muslikin and another male Indian national Vaithilingam Balamurugam, both employees of Syarikat TB Hock Peng reportedly swam across the Mukah River at Hock Peng Jetty, along Mukah-Balingian Road, from a tongkang (lighter or a flat-bottomed boat) TB Hock Peng 27 to another tongkang TB Hock Peng 25 that was berthing across river at around 5pm on Wednesday to meet friends.
While swimming across the river, the victim (Muslikin) was seen as struggling against the current and then disappeared into the water and did not surface. His colleague the Indian national, however, arrived safely on the other side of the river.
As such the local Fire and Rescue Services Department (Bomba) was notified of the matter and immediately despatched personnel to form a search and rescue (SAR) team starting from the evening and resumed at 0650hrs yesterday for the day two SAR operation. Two vehicles with four fire personnel led by PBK II Hady Bin Harry together with members of the Royal Malaysian Police Force were involved in the SAR operation.
Bomba employed ‘surface searching method’ for the SAR operation around the area concerned. At press time, the body of the Indonesian has not been found, according to the information received from the Pusat Gerakan Operasi Bomba Negeri yesterday.
