The death toll has climbed to 16 from a Friday earthquake in Malaysia.
The 5.9-magnitude quake struck around Mount Kinabalu in Sabah state. The quake rained boulders and rocks down around the mountain and blocked hiking trails, trapping climbers on the country’s highest peak.
One survivor told the Associated Press that rescue efforts were scarce and that they “waited for a helicopter that never came.”
One group of 21 climbers on the mountain trekked down the mountain after promised helicopter rescue didn’t arrive for them either.
“There were risks of us dying up there of cold overnight,” said 23-year-old Sabah native Amanda Peter. “The guide said we either die of waiting or we die trying. So we all chose to try walking down ourselves.”
Peter noted her group saw two dead hikers laying on rocks as they made their descent.
“It really affected me as it could have been me. I was lucky to be given a chance to live,” she said.
Among the dead were six children from Singapore on a school trip. Their teacher and guide also perished.
Local officials admitted it was “easy to pick on weaknesses” of the rescue operation and that they would be examining shortcomings after the current incident has passed.
Chinese officials have confirmed they are looking at a proposal to create a network of satellites that would allow them to spy on any part of the planet.
The system is reportedly gaining a boost because of the missing Malaysian Airlines flight that has eluded any search efforts. Several members of the Chinese leadership say a Chinese operated worldwide surveillance network would have found the aircraft.
“If we had a global monitoring network today, we wouldn’t be searching in the dark,” a source told Australia’s News Limited. “We would have a much greater chance to find the plane and trace it to its final position.”
The current Chinese satellite system reportedly only allows the country to spy on their nation and surrounding countries. However, the proposed system would be so detailed and significantly upgraded in technology to current systems that it would place China ahead of the United States in global surveillance.
If the government goes ahead with funding the plan, the network could be in place and operational within two years.
Military officials are now releasing radar information that shows the missing Malaysia Airlines flight likely was flown hundreds of miles off course leading investigators to believe foul play was the cause of the disappearance.
The military track shows the plane turned west after leaving Malaysia on a corridor that is usually seen for flights that would be heading to the Middle East.
Aviation experts say the path of the flight was carrying it between navigational waypoints leaving it undetected to most of the current systems in place to track aircraft. The flight was tracked by military radar off the country’s northwest coast, hundreds of miles from the scheduled flight path.
Military investigators say that shows the pilots of the craft had knowledge of the navigational waypoints.
A senior Malaysian police official said sabotage or hijack are now being considered as the likely reasons for the plane’s sudden change in course.
Malaysian military says that a Malaysian Airlines flight that disappeared on Saturday night could have been miles off course over the Strait of Malacca rather than over the open ocean.
The military also says that it appears the two men who boarded the flight using stolen passports were not terrorists but men fleeing Iran to ask for asylum in Europe. Officials would not say if terrorism was still a focus of the investigation.
The last day has proven to cause more questions than answers as searchers discovered the oil slicks found in the ocean were not connected to the flight. They also discovered that some of the debris that was thought to be parts of the aircraft is nothing more than flotsam that had gathered together.
The U.S. Navy has sent ships and at least three search and rescue helicopters into the area to try and find debris or survivors.
The airline has reportedly offered $3,000 to the family members of everyone on the flight while saying they were not going to stop rescue efforts.
