Kuala Lumpur: Two climbers were killed and another 17 went missing after a 5.9-magnitude quake jolted Malaysia's Sabah state on Friday and left them stranded on Mount Kinabalu, police said on Saturday.
According to the Malaysian Meteorological Services Department, the quake struck 16 km northwest of Ranau district near Mount Kinabalu, at a depth of 54 km. It was felt across Sabah state, Xinhua news agency reported.
Ranau district Police Chief Superintendent Farhan Lee Abdullah said that eight Singaporeans, six Malaysians, and one each from China, the Philippines and Japan are still missing.
The bodies of a 12-year-old Singaporean student and a 30-year-old local mountain guide have already been brought down and taken to a hospital, he added.
Earlier in the day, Malaysian rescuers brought the last of 137 hikers down to safety.The tremor triggered small landslides and stonefalls on the 4,095-metre Mount Kinabalu, the highest peak in Malaysia.
According to the photos posted online by the trapped climbers, part of the iconic Donkey's Ear twin peaks of the mountain were badly damaged.
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