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MIRI: A ship with more than 100 crew members on board is reported to be sinking in the South China Sea off the coast of Miri in northern Sarawak after running into problems in the early hours of Tuesday (27 October) in the morning.
A massive search and rescue operation was launched after distress signals from Dayang Topaz were picked up.
The Malaysian Maritime Control Agency (MMEA) has confirmed that, so far, 121 people have been rescued.
MMEA CEO Datuk Mohd Zubil Mat Som said that the Maritime Rescue Coordination Center in Putrajaya received a report from the crew of a ship called Sapura Construction.
“At 6.45 am, Sapura Construction received distress signals from another ship, Dayang Topaz, about 7.7 nautical miles off the coast of Kuala Baram in Miri.
Search and rescue operations in the South China Sea off the coast of Miri in northern Sarawak. MMEA Image
“The Sapura Construction team rushed to the site. They saw Dayang Topaz sink.
“MMEA sent our ships along with those of Petronas and Shell. They found that 125 crew members had jumped into the sea from the sinking ship.
“At 8.45am, 121 crew members had been rescued.
“One was found dead, while four are still missing,” it said in a statement.
The search and rescue operation continues.
Northern Sarawak has been hit by strong winds and heavy rains in the past two days. The ship is believed to have been hit by massive waves.
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