No fewer than twenty-six passengers have been declared missing after a fishing boat which had an undocumented migrant workers onboard sank off the coast of Indonesia was reported to have been found alive.
A spokesman for the Belawan naval base on Sumatra island, Rully Ramadhiansyah who spoke to reporters on Monday revealed that the two of the vessel’s 86 passengers, who had plans of moving over to neighbouring Malaysia to find jobs, were killed when the boat capsised yesterday.
He also disclosed that the captain as well as three crew members all survived following the disaster.
‘We found some of the passengers tightly holding to floats, jerry cans and other floating objects to survive in the ocean,’ Ramadhiansyah told reporters on Monday.
‘Some others were rescued by a fishing boat’ he added.
The wooden vessel sank off North Sumatra province somewhere close to the coastal area of Tanjung Api as it made attempts to sail through an unguarded route to Malaysia.
It reportedly sprang a leak soon after departing just before it was hit by strong waves and then capsising in the end.
Africa Today News, New York recalls that officials had previously indicated that there were 89 people on board at the time of the sinking but later revised it to 90 following testimony from the boat’s captain.
Relatively affluent Malaysia is home to millions of migrants from poorer parts of Asia, many of them undocumented, working in industries including construction and agriculture.
Indonesians illegally seeking work in neighbouring Malaysia often risk dangerous sea crossings, and accidents are common due to bad weather and poor safety measures.
Africa Today News, New York had in January reported that six Indonesian women had drowned off the coast of Malaysia when their boat sank during a suspected attempt to enter the country illegally.
A month earlier, 21 Indonesian migrants also died when their boat capsised.
AFRICA TODAY NEWS, NEW YORK