Kuala lumpur: The families of two fishermen feared missing after their boat is believed to have sunk in the waters off Kemaman, about 27.9 nautical miles from the coast, are holding on to hope for their safe return. The incident occurred during a storm on Wednesday.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, the missing fishermen are skipper Azan Muda, 68, and Nordin Mohammad, 61. A third fisherman, Mahadi Jusoh, 51, was rescued by fellow fishermen at around 10:30 am yesterday.

Azan's wife, Salma Abdullah, 65, remains optimistic about her husband's safety. She mentioned that Azan, who has been fishing since he was 13 and previously worked as a deep-sea boat diver, would likely have the skills to survive the incident. Salma expressed her belief in their safety and hopes for a positive outcome, as she shared when interviewed at her home in Kampung Geliga.

Salma recounted how Azan had left for the sea at 11 am on Tuesday, shortly after she finished reciting the Quran. She was first informed of her husband's disappearance at 4 pm yesterday by one of her children. Despite his usual practice of spending three days and two nights at sea, Salma began to worry when Azan did not return on time and her calls went unanswered.

Nordin's wife, Nor Azizah Rani, 45, also holds hope for her husband's safe return. She last saw him on Tuesday morning before he departed for the fishing trip. Due to limited communication while at sea, she usually did not contact him.

Nordin had been working on Azan's boat for six months and had previous experience as a crew member on various boats in Kuala Dungun and Kuala Paka.

The Kemaman Maritime Zone director, Abdul Halim Hamzah, stated that 24 personnel from the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) are involved in the search and rescue operation. The MMEA has deployed the Penggalang 16 and KM Bagahak vessels for the mission. The search resumed at 7 am today after being paused at 9 pm last night, but the missing fishermen have not yet been found.