2 Divers Found Alive 4 Days After Drifting Away From Boat

But it was too late to save a 14-year-old boy
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Apr 9, 2022 7:30 AM CDT
2 Divers Rescued 4 Days After Drifting Away From Boat
This photo released by the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) on Friday, April 8, 2022, shows search and rescue operation for foreign divers off the coast of Mersing, Malaysia.   (Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency via AP)

Two divers were rescued by fishermen on Saturday four days after they disappeared off a southern Malaysian island and drifted some 70 nautical miles, but it was too late to save a 14-year-old boy. Alexia Alexandra Molina, 18, of France and Adrian Peter Chesters, 46, of Britain, were found early Saturday in neighboring Indonesian waters and taken to a hospital, the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency said. Chesters' son, Nathen Renze Chesters, remained missing but Chesters told police that he had died because he was too weak, the agency said in a statement. The agency said it notified Indonesian authorities to continue searching for the body, the AP reports.

Molina and Chesters were found 16 nautical miles north of Indonesia’s Bintan Island, which is about 70 nautical miles from the location they were reported missing on Wednesday, according to Mersing police chief Cyril Edward Nuing. The three were diving with their Norwegian instructor, Kristine Grodem, about 50 feet deep at an island off Mersing town in Malaysia's southern Johor state. Grodem, 35, was rescued Thursday by a tugboat. She said the four of them surfaced safely Wednesday afternoon but later drifted away from the boat and were separated by a strong current. The boat skipper was detained for further investigation, and diving activities off Mersing were suspended.

(More diving stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X