Baby among 8 Singaporeans rescued from overturned boat in Bintan: 'I just wanted to save my daughter'

Eight Singaporeans, including a six-month-old baby, were trapped after a boat they were in reportedly overturned in Lagoi, Bintan on Sunday (May 31).

Sayyid Muhammad Fariid Syed Amzah Alsagoff and his wife Sharifah Shafiqah Syed Ezzat, both 27, were on a three-day family vacation in Bintan with their six-month-old baby daughter from Saturday, reported Berita Harian (BH) on Wednesday.

The incident occurred just as the family were on their mangrove tour on Sunday, at around 2pm.

The boat they were in was caught in sudden heavy rain and strong currents as it approached a mangrove area known to be home to snakes and other dangerous wildlife.

The boat was carrying 10 people, comprising of eight family members, including the baby and a nine-year-old child, the boat captain and a tour guide.

Sharifah was seated next to her husband, with their infant daughter strapped to his chest in a baby carrier under his life jacket.

All passengers reportedly wore life jackets except for the baby, as there were no infant-sized jackets available.

Boat captain speeding, say couple

The couple claimed that the boat captain was speeding despite the heavy rain and dangerous currents, which ultimately caused the boat to overturn, reported BH.

"I was trapped for about 10 to 15 seconds, but that was the longest 10 to 15 seconds of my life," Fariid recounted his ordeal to BH.

"I thought of nothing else, just wanted to save my daughter and myself."

According to Fariid, everyone managed to surface quickly except for him, his daughter, his cousin and his cousin's daughter.

Eventually, everyone swam to a nearby mangrove area about two minutes away, and clung to the trees in the heavy rain for about 45 minutes until they were rescued by another boat carrying the rest of their family members.

They only found out after the incident that the boat's maximum capacity was eight people.

They survivors received treatment for minor injuries at a local hospital and suffered an estimated loss of around $7,000, including their phones, wallets and car keys. 

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helmy.saat@asiaone.com