KOTA KINABALU – Three siblings and a friend died while swimming at a beach near Putatan last night.
The siblings are Noraini Amit, 13, Rafidah Amit, 14, and Korais Amit, 8, and their friend Galang Naim, 17.
Their bodies were found near Gorogon Beach in Petagas, Putatan, between 8.30pm and 9.30pm last night.
Four others who were with them – Alex Karim, 10, Abdul Razak Amin, 13, Rafie, 12, and Suraidah Hanim Abdullah, 10 – survived.
Penampang police last night said the victims went missing when a sudden surge of tide and undercurrents pulled them into the open sea while swimming at the beach about 5pm.
“The four survivors alerted villagers for help after the incident,” they said.
The Civil Defence Force received a call about 7.45pm and deployed a squad to the scene.
“A jetski rescue team was tasked to search for the victims. The last victim was found about 9.25pm,” it said.
Other agencies involved in the search-and-rescue were the Fire and Rescue Department, the police and People Volunteer’s Corp. – The Vibes, June 2, 2021