Search team finds no wreckage
Published on: Tuesday, October 13, 2015
Kota Kinabalu: A Philippine Search and Rescue team has concluded as "false info" claims that wreckage suspected to be that of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 was discovered in the southern tip of the country.The search and rescue was ordered by Tawi-Tawi Provincial Governor Nurbert M. Sahali who received information from the Lahad Datu BIMP-EAGA Chairman, Nordin Ening, following a police report lodged by one Jamil Omar at the Sandakan police headquarters on Saturday. It was reported on Sunday that the Filipino had lodged a police report claiming to have found a plane wreckage with human remains inside.
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He was reported to have said that the wreckage was discovered by his nephew.The man, an audio visual technician in his 40s, was reported saying his nephew and several others were hunting for birds when they spotted the aircraft wreckage on the island of Ubian. The man claimed that they managed to get near the wreckage and found skeletal remains in the pilot's chair with the seatbelt fastened. Before leaving the area, he said the group took a flag they found in the wreckage.
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Following the report, a Search and Rescue team comprising personnel and officers from the Philippines National Police, Task Group 62, coast guard and navy went to Sugbay at about 8pm the same day to investigate claims by Siti Kayam who is Jamil's relative. Investigations and search done by the team found that the information given was false.It is understood that the Governor's office had personally contacted the Languyan Police Chief and the Sugbay Village Chief to obtain detailed information on the report before confirming that there was no truth to the claims by Siti Kayam.
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Captain Giovanni Carlo Bacordo, commander of Naval Task Force 61, said they had deployed a gunboat to investigate the claims of a man about the sightings of the wreckage."Since yesterday, we deployed a gunboat there because of the news. We interviewed the people there, the fishermen, but they have no knowledge about it," he said.Bacordo added that locals had no knowledge of it and were surprised by the news. Flight MH370 remains one of the most baffling aviation disasters in history. It disappeared in March last year, while flying from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 passengers and crew members on board.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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