‘The sound got louder... but it was too late to run’: Family from Singapore recalls horror of Batang Kali landslide

Tee Yeow King (in truck, left), carrying his daughter, and his wife (on the ground, second left) arriving at Ulu Yam Baru police station on Dec 16, 2022. - Bernama

SINGAPORE (The Straits Times/Asia News Network): It was about 2am on Friday (Dec 16) and Singapore permanent resident Tee Yeow King was settling down to sleep in his tent when he heard a loud rumbling sound.

He knew something was terribly wrong and all he could do was rouse his wife and grab his children and place them under his body.

Speaking to The Straits Times from Ulu Yam Baru police station, in Selangor, Malaysia, Tee, 37, a sales manager, said: “The sound got louder and it was nothing like I have heard before. It sounded like trees were being ripped apart and rocks crumbling.

“The sound seemed to be headed our way but it was too late to run out of our tent in the dark. It all happened very quickly.

“We were very lucky.”

They prayed for the best while taking cover in their tent and after a few minutes, it all went quiet.

Tee, his wife and two children, a son, aged seven, and a three-year-old daughter, were miraculously unhurt.

At least 16 people have so far been found dead after the deadly landslide, Malaysia’s health minister Zaliha Mustafa said on Friday, after visiting some victims receiving treatment at Hospital Selayang in Selangor.

The Tees’ tent at Father’s Organic Farm, in Gohtong Jaya near Genting Highlands, on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur, was one of two which were untouched by the landslide.

Three other tents located at the highest level of the camping ground were flattened.

There are three levels at the campsite where visitors are allowed to pitch tents.

Tee said they were on holiday with some Malaysian friends. Using torchlights, they helped one family whose child was partially buried in the mud.

“We became scared again when we heard a second loud sound,” he recalled.

By 3am, some of the survivors, including the Tees, were evacuated to a more secure area nearby. There, paramedics examined them to see who needed urgent medical care.

At around 6.30am, they were taken to Ulu Yam Baru police station.

There, police officers got food for the group and some pairs of shoes for those who lost them in the deadly landslide. The children were also given toys and entertained by the officers, said Tee.

A police officer from the station said: “They (Tee’s family) are safe and well. We require their help in making a police report before they are allowed to leave the station.”

Ulu Yam Baru police station is roughly 15km away from Father’s Organic Farm.

Thanking the Malaysian authorities and rescuers, Tee added: “Their response was really fast and they tried their best to help and comfort us.”