Khirudin Drahman. — Photo by Chimon Upon
KUCHING (Oct 4): The Fire and Rescue Department (Bomba) is just a supporting agency in the search and rescue (SAR) operation for the 10 anglers who went missing last Saturday, said its state director Khirudin Drahman.
He pointed out that the lead agency for any such operation in maritime zones and the high seas will be the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) in accordance with the provisions of Act 633, or the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency Act 2004, of which Section 6(1)(b) states that the function of MMEA is to perform maritime search and rescue.
He explained that with the last position of the boat carrying the 10 anglers at approximately 21 nautical miles near Pulau Satang, this was under the Malaysian Maritime Zone and there was no conflict in terms of duties and responsibilities on the part of MMEA and Bomba.
“In line with that, Bomba Sarawak has the scope of search tasks in coastal and riverine areas. This is in accordance with Act 341, or the Fire Services Act 1988, Section 5(1)(c).
“This provision creates the scope of responsibilities and roles of the respective agencies in order to ensure the smooth operation of SAR and achieve its objectives. This is also in line with the National Security Council Directive 20, which places agencies according to their respective areas of responsibility, authority and expertise.
“In addition, the marine logistics capability at the Bomba Sarawak level is limited and suitable in coastal and riverine areas,” he said in a statement.
Khirudin was responding to news reports of Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah’s query as to why the SAR operation had been postponed by the agencies at around 6.30pm despite good weather conditions.
Abdul Karim yesterday took aim at the ineffectiveness of the SAR team set up to look for the 10 missing anglers and said that the SAR team must be better equipped to handle such incidents.
The minister also revealed that the sole missing victim is actually his cousin.
“We know that Bomba and their SAR team — I think their areas of expertise are more towards the rivers — and when it comes to choppy seas, you can’t use those dinghy boats,” Abdul Karim had told newsmen after visiting Sarawak Cultural Village yesterday.
Last Saturday, a boat carrying 10 anglers capsized some 21 nautical miles off Pulau Satang Besar, Telaga Air. Nine of the victims have since been found by the local fishermen.
Abdul Karim had also said it was quite sad to hear the SAR team had stopped looking for the victims at about 6.30pm last Saturday when the weather on that evening was okay and he queried why there must be ‘office hours’ for such SAR operation.
“Somehow, the local boatmen were still continuing to scout the sea looking for the victims and they managed to find nine of them early in the morning (yesterday).
“If the local boatmen can find them, why can’t the SAR team locate the victims? Why is the team sleeping while the village folks are out at the sea? Is there a problem with you going out to the sea to look for the victim?” he had asked.
Abdul Karim had also questioned why the Sarawak Coast Guard did not participate in the SAR operation.
Meanwhile, MMEA Sarawak director First Admiral Zin Azman Md Yunus at a press conference on Sunday defended the agencies’ decision to postpone the SAR operation at around 6.30pm on Saturday.
He had explained that as soon as the weather gets dark, the search party will have poor visibility in the area which will increase the likelihood of the search boats knocking into victims who are floating at the sea.
“That is why, the operation was postponed until first light,” he added.
According to press reports, the agencies involved in the SAR coordinated by the Maritime Rescue Sub Centre (MRSC) Kuching under MMEA are namely Bomba, Royal Malaysian Police, the police’s Air Wing Unit (PGU), Marine Police Force, the Sarawak Marine Fisheries Department, and the Civil Defence Force (APM) as well as the surrounding maritime angling community.