BETONG: Minister of Women, Family and Community Development, Dato’ Sri Rohani Abdul Karim yesterday visited the search and rescue (S&R) operation centre for the missing couple, believed to have fallen into the river and drowned while catching fish near Kampung Semarang here.
Rohani arrived at the centre around 9.30 am and was greeted by the Head of Disaster and Operation Secretariat of the Malaysian Civil Defence Force, Mohd Arjul Aswad.
During the one-hour visit, she was briefed on the operation and development on the case.
Rohani expressed her sadness on the incident and said she would arrange to provide appropriate assistance to the families of the victims.
“I would like to extend my condolences to the families of the victims,” she said, adding that news of their disappearance came as a shock not only to family members but the entire local community.
In the incident around 6am on Wednesday, Yunus bin Morni, 60 and his wife Zahara bt Hamzah, 54, were believed to have drowned while fishing.
Nearby fishermen found their boat in good condition with the engine still running near the Kabong estuary, and reported to the police what had happened at 1.30 pm the same day.
Following the incident, a search and rescue operation was launched, involving the Civil Defence Force, the Fire and Rescue Department, the police and the Maritime Enforcement Agency with assistance from villagers.
Yunus’ body was found at 9.42 am yesterday morning and was taken to Betong Hospital for a post-mortem. Meanwhile, the search for Zahara is still ongoing.
