Engineers begin to dismantle wreckage of crashed plane in Kudat

KOTA KINABALU: MASwings engineers are beginning to dismantle the wreckage of the airline’s Twin Otter that crashed into a house in the northern Kudat district a week ago.

A group of the airline’s engineers and technicians were seen combing through the wreckage at Kampung Sin San, barely 200m from the grassy airstrip of Sabah’s northernmost town.

Businessman Abdul Quayum Abd Mirdad whose house was severely damaged in the Oct 10 mishap said MASwings engineers had sought his permission to dismantle part of the fence to enable them to dismantle the twin engine aircraft.

‘’From what I gather, they hope to transport the aircraft to Kota Kinabalu over the next few days,” he said when contacted on Monday.

The MASwings Twin Otter aircraft with 16 people on board crashed into Abdul Quayum’s house after veering off the runway while making a second attempt to land at the airstrip amid windy conditions.

Co-pilot Marc Joel Bansh, 23, and passenger Tan Ah Chai, 69, were killed while the pilot Wan Mohd Abd Amir Wan Yahya and 13 other passengers survived the crash.

Meanwhile, Abdul Quayum said his family could only have their Hari Raya prayers at the surau of the Kudat hotel where they had been staying since the mishap.

‘’Most of our belongings are still in the house including my family’s baju raya,” he said in adding that heavy rains in Kudat had flooded the interior of their home they had been living in for 15 years.

‘’We accept this as God’s will and we have been thankful that our family is safe,” said Abdul Quayum.

His wife Suriati Masrair and their 11-year-old son Fahrul Razi who were in the house escaped unscathed when the Twin Otter aircraft crashed into it.

Abdul Quayum said his family also remembered the families of Marc and Tan in their Aidiladha prayers.

‘’They are the ones who suffered the most from this tragedy and we can only offer our prayers that God will give them the strength they need at this moment,” said Abdul Quayum.