3 dead, 6 still missing in Sabah catamaran mishap

Three bodies were pulled out from the waters near Labuan today after their catamaran capsized while on its way to Pulau Mengalum yesterday.

Sabah Police Commissioner Datuk Ramli Din said one of the dead was a woman.

He said 22 other people were found safe.

"At 3.30 pm, we received information that two victims were found in the waters near Semarang.

"At 6 pm, we were informed that 23 other victims have also been found in the area, but three of them were dead. Six other people are still missing," he told a press conference here.

Ramli said the identity of the dead victims had yet to be ascertained.

The two victims found earlier had been identified as Aman Abdul, 38 and Sharezaa Salian Sali, 25, and both are locals.

Ramli said the boat ferrying a skipper, two crew members and 28 tourists from China was believed to have capsized due to strong winds and big waves at around 10 am yesterday, an hour after it left the Tanjung Aru jetty in Sandakan for Pulau Mengulum, about 56 km northwest of Kota Kinabalu.

However, he said police were investigating whether there was an element of negligence.

Meanwhile, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim said the search and rescue operation involved various assets owned by the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency, Marine Police and Royal

Malaysian Air Force.

The operation was activated at 10.15 am yesterday and coordinated by Kota Kinabalu Maritime Rescue Sub Coordinator (MRCS) covering a search area of 400 square nautical miles.