Two Chinese sailors were rescued alive Friday from the pump room of the capsized dredger ‘JBB Rong Chang 8’ in Malacca Strait, after several hours of search and rescue operations.
The 2016-built dredger, owned by Malaysian Rong Chang Shipping SDN BHD, was en route from Singapore to Telok Ramonia, sailing in western direction, when it capsized with 18 crew onboard, off Parit Jawa, Johor State, Malaysia, in the morning hours of Wednesday, 21 March.
14 crewmen were reported missing at the time, but hopes were ongoing that they could have been trapped alive inside the vessel. The two rescued crewmen, 47-years-old and 62-years old, had indeed been trapped for around 50 hours inside the dredger. They were conscious and transferred to hospital.
To date, four men have been recovered dead, five have been rescued and are in good health, while nine people remain unaccounted for. According to local media reports, divers have failed to track any further sign of life inside the dredger and authorities have moved the search to surrounding waters.
The exact causes of the incident are yet unclear. The investigation is ongoing deploying forces from the Royal Malaysian Navy, the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency, and private companies.
