An oil and gas employee drowned while fishing for crabs near Kg Batu Manikar beach here.

Zainudin Suhaili, aged 31, was alone when he set out to the beach around 8pm yesterday. When he failed to return home, family members alerted the Fire and Rescue Department at 1.19am today and lodged a report at the Lubok Temiang police station at 2.18am.

Labuan Fire and Rescue director Zainal Madasin said the Layangan fire station dispatched an emergency medical rescue services (EMRS) boat and located the victim after more than three hours at 5.16am, about 150 metres from the beach.

"He was not breathing. We believed he was going out to check a crab trap but somehow got into trouble," he told Bernama, adding, the body had been sent to Labuan Hospital for post-mortem. - BERNAMA