Malaysia resumes search for missing Turkish sailor after yacht sinks
Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) director-general Admiral Datuk Mohd Rosli Abdullah said the missing crewman, Eser Demirkol, was one of three on board when the yacht sank on July 31. The other two crew members have since been found.
He said the latest operation would focus on the area between the suspected sinking location and where the second crew member was found, using MMEA sea and air assets to maximise search coverage.
Earlier, a seven-day search-and-rescue (SAR) operation covering 457.61 nautical square miles involved MMEA sea and air assets, divers from the Special Task and Rescue (STAR) team, and a remotely operated vehicle (ROV). It was called off on Wednesday (Aug 6) after no new leads were found.
The public, especially the maritime community, is urged to contact the 999-emergency line or the Putrajaya Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) at 03-8941 3140, which operates 24 hours, if they have any information on the missing man.
Media reports earlier said the three Turkish nationals comprising yacht captain Ahmet Volkan Ata, 52, Ates Demiroren, 42, and Demirkol, 52, had planned to sail from Malaysia to their homeland on July 28 as part of a round-the-continent voyage.
On the afternoon of July 29, the yacht was caught in a storm and believed to have sunk near Pulau Yu. Demiroren was rescued by local fishermen while adrift at sea, while Ata was found safe nearly 43 hours later by another fishing boat. – Bernama
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Starting in 1990, the bunker was converted into a media centre while it also housed a renowned music club called Uebel & Gefahrlich (Evil & Dangerous) as well as a 'resonance room', the first club in Europe devoted to classical music. Then, between 2019 and 2024, five further floors were built on top, providing room for a convention hall and a hotel with restaurant, cafe, bar and shop. Today, the bunker is two colours – gray below, green up above. Thousands of perennial plants, bushes and trees were planted on the five new floors. The climb is rewarding. Once on top, there is a panoramic view of the nearby St Michael's Church, the sparkling new Elbphilharmonie concert hall, the bustling Elbe River harbour, and the surrounding neighbourhood. Only when first-division football club FC St Pauli hosts a home match in the Millerntor Stadium next to the bunker is the 'Bergpfad' closed down – nobody could reach it among the throng of football fans. 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