Kedah and Perlis Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) director Mohd Zawawi Abdullah said the 18 of them were rescued by local fishermen at about 3pm.

According to earlier reports, their boat was believed to have capsized at around 2pm.

“All 18 of them were rescued at about 3pm, 10 nautical miles west off Pulau Singa Besar.

“The Tenggol Maritime vessel and Rescue Boat 5 that were around the location of the incident later transported them back to the MMEA jetty in Bukit Malut, Langkawi,” he told a media conference early today.

He said two of the anglers suffered injuries, one with a suspected broken leg and the other with a hand injury.

“The rest are fine. However, all of them will undergo a medical examination as well,” he added.

He advised those with plans for sea activity to get prior updates on weather conditions and to ensure safety and communications equipment were adequate before venturing out to sea.

Meanwhile, the skipper of the boat, Syed M Hidayat Syed Mohd Bakhir, 33, said he learnt that everyone on the boat was safe when he managed to contact one of the crew members later in the evening.

Syed Hidayat had not joined in the excursion and was replaced by another skipper.

“A crew member told me they had been at sea for six hours before their boat was hit by big waves at around 2pm.

“They were all rescued by a fishing vessel in the area,” he said.