News Digest

Malaysian rescuers bring quake-stranded climbers to safety

Malaysian rescuers brought the last of 137 hikers down to safety Saturday after an earthquake stranded them atop Mount Kinabalu, an official said, but media reports claimed that at least two people were killed. The 6.0-magnitude quake struck near the picturesque mountain, a popular tourist destination, early Friday, triggering landslides and sending huge granite boulders tumbling down the 4,095-metre peak’s wide, jagged crown. The quake, one of the strongest in the country in decades, jolted a wide area of the Malaysian state of Sabah on Borneo island, shattering windows, cracking walls, and causing other relatively minor damage.

The 137 climbers have safely arrived at the Park HQ, the last batch at 2:50 am (1850 GMT). We have a challenging task today searching for those missing.

Sabah state tourism minister Masidi Manjun, on his Twitter feed

Authorities also have said previously that at least several people were injured but have not provided clear information. However, Malaysian media reports said that a local tour guide and a woman believed to be Singaporean had been killed on the mountain. The Kinabalu Today news portal quoted search and rescue personnel saying most of those who were on the mountain at the time of the quake were Malaysian. But it said they also included hikers from Singapore, the United States, Philippines, Britain, Thailand, Turkey, China and Japan.