BUTTERWORTH: The wife of S. Arumugam, who perished in Saturday’s boat capsize near Pulau Perhentian, alleges the operator ignored repeated pleas for life jackets despite stormy conditions.
S. Sanggetha, 39, who also lost her three-year-old daughter, described the harrowing ordeal as preventable.
The group of four families—seven adults and eight children—were returning from Pulau Perhentian Kecil to their resort on Pulau Perhentian Besar after dinner when the weather turned treacherous.
“We asked for life jackets, but the driver claimed they were wet and unnecessary for the short trip,“ Sanggetha told reporters at her Taman Bayu Indah home.
As rain intensified, waves overturned the boat. Sanggetha clung to her nine-year-old daughter while her husband and youngest child vanished.
A nearby boater rescued them, but hopes faded when she learned her husband and toddler were among the three fatalities.
Penang Housing and Environment Committee chairman Datuk Seri S. Sundarajoo visited the family, urging authorities to penalise negligent operators.
“Revoke licences if regulations were breached. This tragedy was avoidable,“ he stressed.
The victims included Arumugam, his daughter Sarrvhika, and 10-year-old V. Vennpani. Two survivors remain hospitalised, one critically.
