Five-year-old who fell into canal found dead

It is believed that the boy fell into the canal while playing on the bridge that runs over it.

BALING: A five-year-old boy who fell into a irrigation canal on Thursday afternoon at Kampung Lanai here was found dead 18 hours later.

The victim was identified as Muhammad Aminuddin Mohamad Nazri.

State Fire and Rescue Department public relations officer Mohamad Mustakim Mukhtar said that a search and rescue (SAR) operation was launched after the station received a distress call at about 5pm on Thursday.

"A scuba team from the Sungai Petani Fire and Rescue Station was dispatched to the scene and arrived at about 7pm and immediately conducted surface searches with ropes and grappling irons," he said.

The boy was found at 10.54am on Friday some 4km from the scene.

It is believed that the boy fell into the canal while playing on the bridge that runs over it.