Person of the year: Mithunjay Langgim, ranger who helped earthquake survivors

Sabah Parks officer Mithunjay Langgim was instrumental in the rescue of 170 climbers on Mount Kinabalu following the June 5 earthquake.

June 5, 7.15am: For nearly a minute that seemed to last an hour, Mithunjay Langgim literally felt the earth move.

The Sabah Parks ranger was inside a hut just 500m from Mount Kinabalu’s Low’s Peak when he felt the structure rattle and the mountain shook. He ran out and saw huge dust clouds and heard loud rumblings as tonnes of boulders and rocks dislodged by a 5.9-magnitude quake barreled down the mountain slopes.