17 Indonesian sailors rescued near Penang

17 Indonesian sailors rescued near Penang

PENANG, Malaysia (AFP): Seventeen Indonesian crew were rescued
by local fishermen yesterday after their cargo vessel sank during
a storm off Malaysia's northern island of Penang late Friday.

Police said a trawler found the Indonesians clinging to two
rafts made from life buoys, plastic water bottles and life
jackets, at 2 a.m. yesterday, several miles off Penang island.

On reaching the island, the crew, aged 17 to 42 years, were
taken to the police district headquarters to alert the
authorities who had already resumed their search at daybreak
Sunday.

District police chief superintendent Tan Seng Eng said all the
crew had been accounted for after earlier reports said there were
18 on board.

More than 60 rescuers and five marine police patrol boats were
engaged in the search for the crew and the 300-ton ship, the KM
Kurnia Abadi. The ship has yet to be located.

The vessel, which was transporting timber, left northern
Sumatra in Indonesia Thursday and was scheduled to dock at Penang
port Friday night.

A distress signal was sent late Friday to the shipping agent
in Penang.

Search efforts were hampered by rough seas and lack of
information on the exact location of the vessel.