Member of yacht crew feared drowned off Kuah, Langkawi

ALOR SETAR, May 11 (Bernama) -- A crew member of a yacht is feared drowned after he was believed to have fallen into the waters off Kuah in Langkawi this afternoon.

Langkawi police chief ACP Shariman Ashari said information was received from the public regarding the incident at about 6.15 pm, stating that a man was suspected to have fallen into the sea.

"Preliminary investigation found that the victim was believed to be Ahmad Nur Hassanuddin Ibrahim from Alor Setar, a 23-year-old who worked as one a crew member aboard ‘Sunset Dinner Cruise’," he said in a statement tonight.

Shariman said that based on interviews with the victim's colleagues, he was late for duty and the yacht he was to have boarded had left at 4.30 pm, so he decided to chase the yacht in a small boat.

"At about 5.00 pm, a fishing boat returning from Pulau Bumbun heading to the Yacht Club found a small boat without anyone on board, but found a pair of slippers and a hat floating near it, and then enlisted the help of others (to search). They then contacted the police," he said.

According to Shariman, the search and rescue operation carried out by personnel from multiple agencies was halted at 8.50 pm today due to the dark conditions and would resume tomorrow.

-- BERNAMA