TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Two Indonesian nationals were found stranded at Batu Payung Beach in Tinagat, Malaysia. Both of them are victims of a motorboat accident that took place when the motorboat was on its way from Tinagat to Nyamuk Island, Indonesia. The Malaysian authority sent the news to the Indonesian Consulate General in Tawau on Wednesday, February 8, 2017.
“Both victims were found unconscious by a fisherman on February 8 at 6 p.m. [local time],” Muhammad Iqbal, director of Indonesian citizen protection at the Foreign Affairs Ministry, said in a press release on Thursday, February 9, 2017.
Iqbal revealed that both victims are not treated at Tawau Hospital. One of the victims said that the motorboat carried 15 passengers.
“The motorboat sank on February 7 at around 6 p.m. [local time]. Both victims survived, but we can yet to question them since they are still traumatized,” he added.
According to Iqbal, only two survivors have been found so far.
“Another victim was found dead by the Indonesian Search and Rescue (SAR) team in Sae Taewan waters, Sebatik, Indonesia,” he revealed.
After the victims were found, the joint Indonesia-Malaysia SAR team moved to find 12 other victims.
YOHANES PASKALIS