The number of people missing after a boat capsized in the Rajang River near Belaga on Tuesday has dwindled to four after another passenger reported to police that he was safe.

Ejang anak Nabau lodged a report at the Kapit police station last night, saying that he had returned to his longhouse after swimming ashore following the incident.

Belaga district police chief DSP Bakar Sebau said the search-and-rescue operation resumed at 7am today for the four missing people - Maurice anak Ajan, Simon anak Patrick, Roslin anak Jati and a man identified only as Paulus.

azlan The ill-fated express boat, Kawan Mas , was travelling from Bakun to Kapit when it capsized at Jeram Tukok-Jeram Bungan between 8.30am and 9am on Tuesday, resulting in 192 passengers being rescued and 11 reported missing. Five of the 11 have since been reported safe while the body of a man was recovered yesterday.

Meanwhile, the Prime Minister’s Department and Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) have allocated RM93,000 as aid for the victims of the boat tragedy.

Belaga state assemblyperson Liwan Lagang said passengers who were safe but had not reported to the police should do so immediately to facilitate the disbursement of the aid.

"Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Joseph Entulu Belaun informed me that the aid would be disbursed based on the police reports,” he told reporters in Belaga today.

Earlier, it was reported that efforts yesterday to raise the boat from the river had failed.

Liwan said the high water-level was among the factors in the search and rescue (SAR) team’s failure to salvage the boat.

The SAR operation was called off about 6pm, and would resume the following day, he told a media conference after chairing a rescue committee meeting in Belaga last night.

Liwan, who is also joint operations director of the SAR operation, said the rescue team would try again to raise the boat, after the Bakun hydroelectric dam was closed, to reduce the water level.

- Bernama