Survivor

[My Malaysiana]

From The Star

Indonesian recalls 9-day sea ordeal
By FREDERICK FERNANDEZ

PORT KLANG: Indonesian Rizal Shahputra spent a harrowing nine days sitting on a tree trunk afloat at sea, seeing one after another of his companions slip away, leaving him all alone the last three days.

The 20-year-old, who was swept 100 nautical miles from his home in Banda Aceh into the middle of the Indian Ocean by the devastating tsunami on Dec 26 was found alive by an officer of a container vessel on Monday evening.

“When the tsunami hit, quite a number of us were swept into the sea. Many of us swam towards a tree trunk and hung on,” he told reporters before being rushed to the Tengku Ampuan Rahimah General Hospital in Klang yesterday.

After the first two days, however, many of his companions, who were weakened, slipped away and died.

“From then on, all I came across were floating bodies and these included those of people I knew,” he said.

The crew of the Panama-registered MV Durban Bridge sent a lifeboat to get closer to Rizal before throwing a lifebuoy to him.

Recalling that fateful day, Rizal said he and several others were laying the foundation for a mosque at Banda Aceh when they were jolted by a loud tremor.

“One of the boys ran towards us and told us that big waves were charging towards us and that we should immediately run for cover,” he said.

All of them made a dash but it was too late and they were swept into the sea by the giant waves which flattened almost the whole of Banda Aceh.

Rizal said he was grateful to Allah that he was alive after spending so many days out in the sea.

“I recited verses from the Quran each time I felt hungry and I thank Him for keeping me alive when so many others have lost their lives.”

Rizal survived by eating coconuts and packets of Milo which he saw floating in the sea.

He also used a piece of crockery which he retrieved from the sea to store rainwater which he used for drinking.

Rizal expressed grief on learning that many people, especially from the Aceh province, had died.

“I know several members of my family members are no longer alive but I will continue to pray that I have the chance to reunite with relatives who made it,” he said.

The vessel, which sailed from Cape Town, South Africa, on Dec 22 docked into Wharf 20 at Northport at about 7am yesterday.

Rizal who had bruises on his chin, arms and legs was rushed by a waiting ambulance to the hospital for medical treatment.

Earlier two Immigration Department officers and two officials from the Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur recorded statements from Rizal.

Meanwhile, Rizal might not have been alive today had it not been for the sharp eyes of MV Durban Bridge chief officer Huang Wen Feng.

Huang was the one to spot Rizal, sitting on a tree trunk and clad in a yellow T-shirt and green pants. The 33-year-old sailor from China’s Fujian province said the ship’s agent, K-Line, had sent them a message last week to keep a watch for possible survivors.

“At first I just saw something floating on the sea. Since it was not very clear, I used a pair of binoculars, and that was when I saw a man frantically waving for help,” he said.