Asia Pacific

SAINT-ANDRE, Réunion: A team of Malaysian investigators on Tuesday (Aug 4) recovered several more pieces of debris of possible interest in the ongoing investigation into the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines flight MH370.

A Malaysian official, who asked not to be named, confirms his four-man team was scouring the coastline around Saint-Andre and retrieved a number of objects, which would be handed over to French experts.

The officials took away several small white objects and what appeared to be a wooden item, from a similar area to where Réunion beach cleaners found a Boeing 777 wing part last Thursday. "We don't know what it is, they're just pieces of interest," the official said.

The Malaysian contingent has been on the island since Saturday, and are directly reporting to French authorities, he confirmed. "We are just walking the beach looking for anything of interest, which could help in the investigation," the official said.

The chief of the French Civil Aviation Authority for Réunion was present as the teams carried away the debris, which will be now undergo further analysis.

Officials from both countries said they were awaiting "the news" from France on Wednesday, where it's expected a report on the recovered plane flaperon will be released.

But the Malaysian investigator urged against pre-empting any conclusions from the experts in Toulouse. "We don't want to raise expectations of the next-of-kin who have already gone through a lot already," he said.

He said most people on the island had a "positive attitude" and had proved willing to help the investigation however they could.

The Malaysian investigation team will stay on Réunion "as long as it takes", he added.

The stretch of coastline on the western side of Réunion has witnessed increased swell and strong winds since the weekend, prompting locals to suggest the chances were greater of more items washing ashore.