Two anglers missing after boat sinks in Sarawak's hinterland

Two anglers have been missing since Saturday night after their boat sank in a river in Long Aton, a hinterland about 235km from the town of Marudi, in northern Sarawak, the State Fire and Rescue Operations Centre said yesterday.

A spokesman for the centre said the two victims, Eduin Jala, 47, and Franky Setiawan Jena, 14, were said to have drifted and disappeared due to strong currents after their boat with three other friends onboard collided with rocks and sank in the river at about 9.30 pm.

"The other three victims managed to save themselves by swimming to the river bank," he said when contacted.

According to him, the Marudi Fire and Rescue Station was informed about the incident at about 11.45 pm and due to the location which is quite far inland and reachable by logging trails, a team of four only arrived at about 5.10 pm on Sunday.

Prior to their arrival, an initial search operation was carried out starting at 6.30 am this morning involving the staff of Sekolah Kebangsaan Long Aton and residents from Kampung Long Aton and Kampung Long Nuah.

-- BERNAMA