Singapore mourns eight killed in Malaysia earthquake

Singapore: Singapore has declared a Day of National Remembrance tomorrow for the eight Singaporeans, including three Indian-origin students, killed in an earthquake in Malaysia while they were on an excursion at the country's highest peak.

State flags on all government buildings will be flown at half-mast and a minute's silence will be observed at the beginning of the sporting activities day at all venues of the ongoing SEA (South East Asian) Games, the office of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said in a statement today.

"The Prime Minister is deeply saddened by the deaths of eight Singaporeans in the earthquake at Mount Kinabalu," the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said.

"We hope that this collective expression of sympathy and support from all Singaporeans will give solace and comfort to the families and loved ones of the victims," the statement said.

Of the eight Singaporeans killed in the quake, six were students from Tanjong Katong Primary School while one was a teacher.

A Singaporean adventure guide, who was with the students on an expedition to Mount Kinabalu at the time of the earthquake, was also killed.

Another student of Indian-origin, Navdeep Singh Jaryal and a teacher from the same primary school are still missing.

Twenty-nine students and eight teachers from the School were part of an excursion to Malaysia's popular climbing destination Kota Kinabalu in Sabah, which was jolted by a 6.0-magnitude quake on Friday just as the 4,095-metre-high mountain was crowded with hikers.

The quake, which struck near the mountain in the state of Sabah on Borneo island, was one of Malaysia's strongest in decades.

The death toll from the disaster currently stands at 16, with two still missing.

In his condolence message, Prime Minister Lee also thanked those who are working tirelessly in the search, rescue and recovery efforts.