Chinese tourist drowned in waters off Semporna

SEMPORNA - A tourist from China was found drowned in the waters off a resort in Pulau Bum Bum near here this morning, after going missing while snorkelling yesterday.

Semporna Water, Fire and Rescue Station chief Noor Jali Maslah said the body of the man, identified as Lin Jun Yong, 25, was found at 10.28 am following a surface search and rescue (SAR) operation.

"The fire station received a call from the police at 8.27 am today about the victim being lost at sea while snorkelling in the waters off the resort yesterday," he said when contacted by reporters.

Meanwhile, Semporna district police chief Supt Mohd Farhan Lee Abdullah in a statement said the resort manager lodged a missing persons report at 8.37 pm yesterday.

"The victim and his friend had gone snorkelling in front of the resort, some 10 to 15 metres from the resort's jetty at 4.30 pm, and they did not wear life jackets as they claimed they were good swimmers,” he said.

"At 5.15 pm, his friend returned to the resort's jetty as he could not spot the victim in the waters. The friend, also a Chinese national, then notified the resort manager and a search was conducted around the resort, but the victim was not found."

Farhan said the initial investigation found that there was a high tide incident with the depth of water being about three metres when the tourists were snorkelling.

"The victim was then found floating in the sea about 30 metres from the resort's jetty today," he said, adding that tour operators must ensure tourists wear life jackets and monitor the group's sea activities in addition to ensuring closed-circuit cameras are in working condition.

In the meantime, the Semporna Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) director Maritime Commander Amir Shubli in a statement said his team activated a SAR operation at 12.35 am and opened a forward base at the Bangau Tourist Jetty.

He said the search area covered 32 square nautical miles around the waters off Pulau Bum Bum and two MMEA assets were mobilised in the operation. - BERNAMA