Kuala Lumpur – Four people, including three foreigners who went missing while sailing near Malaysia’s Borneo island, have been rescued by a Vietnamese fishing vessel, officials said on Thursday.

An official from the Maritime Authority of Malaysia, said the four tourists included Spanish couple David Hernandez and his girlfriend Marta Miguel, Chinese national Tommy Lam and a Malaysian woman, Armella Ali Hassan.

The group disappeared on May 2 while travelling in a boat from Balambangan Island towards Kudat district in Borneo; a journey they should have completed in two hours.

Malaysian coast guard and naval ships conducting a search discovered them aboard Vietnamese fishing trawlers on Thursday morning during an inspection of the vessels, the coast guard said.

Authorities believe engine failure caused the boat to capsize and be swept away by the currents, and ruled out the possibility that the four might have been captured by pirates in the waters close to the Philippines.

Malaysian Maritime Enforce­ment Agency (MMEA) Sabah and Labuan regional director First Admiral Mohd Zubil Mat Som said yesterday that they would be brought to Kota Kinabalu before being sent for medical check-ups.

The four will then be interviewed over what happened.

– TiVi Tuan-san