More than two dozen people have been rescued a day after a boat carrying Chinese tourists sank in Malaysian waters.

But four people of the 31 on board the catamaran remain missing, according to local media reports.

The captain and one of the two crew members were found alive on Sunday afternoon, while 25 of the tourists, who had been drifting in the water in groups, were rescued later.

According to the skipper, the vessel sank after being hit by waves.

Several Malaysian navy and police ships were involved in the search as well as at least one plane after the alarm was raised on Saturday evening.


Rescuers, scouring about 400 square nautical miles of the South China Sea, had been hindered by high winds and choppy waters, a maritime official said.

The operation is continuing to locate those still missing.

Malaysia's prime minister Najib Razak said he was closely monitoring developments, while the Chinese president Xi Jinping "demanded all-out search and rescue efforts".

The boat had left the coastal city of Kota Kinabalu in Sabah state on Saturday morning on its way to Pulau Mengalum, an island about 38 miles off the coast.

Many Chinese people travel abroad during the Lunar New Year holiday, which started on Saturday.

China's consul-general in Sabah, Chen Peijie, said: "Yesterday was the first day of the Chinese Lunar New Year and it should have been a happy day. Unfortunately, such a bad thing happened."