160 stranded on Malaysian mountain

(MENAFN- Arab News) KUALA LUMPUR: Nearly 160 climbers were stranded on one of Southeast Asia's highest mountains early Friday after an earthquake rocked parts of the Malaysian state of Sabah on Borneo island.
The magnitude-5.9 earthquake that struck northwest of Ranau district in Sabah state on Borneo has also left 11 climbers injured officials of Malaysia's meteorological department said.
The US Geological survey said the epicenter of the six-magnitude quake which struck in the morning was about 54km from the state capital of Kota Kinabalu.
Sabah Parks director Jamili Nais said two climbers who were injured on the 4095-meter peak have been brought down. Nine more people are believed to be injured among those stranded on the mountain he said. Their climbing route is apparently blocked or made dangerous by rocks and boulders loosened by the quake and small aftershocks he said. Some of the stranded climbers are foreign but it wasn't clear how many.
Jamili said helicopters can't land due to bad weather and the high altitude but park rangers and mountain guides are trying to help down the climbers.
Climbers from 16 countries had been on the peak including 117 Malaysians 38 Singaporeans five Americans four Dutch three British two French and two Australians he said. There were also tourists from Belgium Thailand the Philippines Kazakhstan India New Zealand South Korea Denmark and China.
Ranau has experienced several weak quakes in recent years. The meteorological department said Sabah has several active fault lines that result in occasional earthquakes.
State Tourism Minister Masidi Manjun said people from nearby villages joined the rescue team to try and reach the climbers.
He tweeted that the strong tremor had damaged climbers' huts and facilities on the mountain and broke one of the twin rock formations famously known as the 'Donkey's Ears' on the mountain.
In a later tweet he confirmed all the stranded climbers were progressing cautiously toward a midway point on the climbing route called Laban Rata.
Jamili said the rescuers hoped to help all the stranded climbers at least reach that area before nightfall. Laban Rata is a usual resting point for climbers trying to scale the summit and has food available.
So far 52 climbers had made it down safely Mohd Affendy Ramin the public relations officer for Sabah Fire and Rescue department said.
'There was a small landslide that cut off access through the usual route up the mountain. Because of this some people are stuck there and cannot come down. ...They are waiting to be rescued' Mohd Affendy said.
Officials said and media pictures showed that the mountain's landmark Donkey's Ears twin peaks had been badly damaged in the quake. Media had reported one or two deaths in the quake and an official said there had been rumors of five to 10 but none has been confirmed.