SHAH ALAM: A RMN clearance diver has died while conducting salvage operation on the sunken KD Pendekar, southeast Johor, today. RMN identified the diver as Leading Seaman 1 Arman San Hermasan,28. His body was recovered by other RMN personnel and was sent to the Sultan Ismail Hospital in Johor Baru for a post-mortem examination.

His remains will be flown to Lahad Datu, Sabah, for burial, RMN said in a release. A board of inquiry has been set up to determine the cause of the incident. Pendekar sank two nautical miles off Tanjung Penyusop, in Pengerang on August 25. The FAC struck an underwater object around noon and sank nearly four hours later. The thirty-nine crew members were rescued by a passing merchant ship.

Several RMN ships including KD Terengganu and KD Gempita – another Handalan class ship like Pendekar – were sent to site the cordon the area to allow for salvage operations.

It is likely that RMN clearance divers were among the first to deploy on the site to ensure the ordnance onboard the ship is disposed safely before work to salvage Pendekar could start. It is likely that the Pendekar was carrying live ammunition from small arms to 57 mm rounds, for her main gun.

— Malaysian Defence

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