KOTA TINGGI: The search and rescue (SAR) operation to find the remaining victims of the boat tragedy at Tanjung Balau here will cease.
The operation that started on Wednesday (Dec 15) was led by the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) together with other agencies such as the Malaysian Armed Forces, Royal Malaysian Navy, police, marine police, Fire and Rescue Department, Civil Defence Force, and the Health Ministry.
According to Johor MMEA deputy director (operations) Maritime Capt Simon Templer Lo Tusa, the operation would end at 6pm on Sunday (Dec 19) because no new leads have been discovered and the chances of finding any survivors were very slim.
"The decision was made after considering that there have been no new findings and that running an operation without any leads will be less effective.
"As of 3pm Sunday, there were no new findings, and if this continues until 6pm, the SAR operation will be stopped," he said in a statement here.
He added that the tragedy involved a total of 50 victims, with 21 recorded deaths, 13 survivors, and 16 others still missing.
The five-day operation involved 203 personnel and officers from various agencies, with 10 sea and aerial assets.
"The five-day search operations have covered a total of 292 nautical sq miles (540km) of sea search and 126 nautical sq miles (233km) of aerial search.
"The land search involved 35km along the shoreline from Tanjung Balau towards Pengerang," he added.
He also said the MMEA will be sending continuous reminders to all the maritime community, such as fishermen, vessels, and ferry operators, to channel any information to the authorities regarding any new findings.
"We would also like to remind all fishermen, especially those who operate on small boats, to cease their sea activities for a while as the weather is expected to get worse.
"They should also regularly update themselves with the latest weather information from the Malaysia Meteorological Department," he added.