Father inconsolable as he pulls out son's body from rubble

GEORGE TOWN (Bernama): It was Asman Hamid's worst nightmare – finding the dead body of his own son among the rubble of the landslide here.

Asman, 62, an Indonesian, was among those searching for victims of the landslide in Jalan Bukit Kukus, Paya Terubong here when he found the body of his 19-year-old son, Samsul.

The deceased, Samsul, aged 19.

According to the victim's aunt, Ramziah, when Asman realised it was his son he had pulled out, he hugged the body tight.

When met at the Penang Hospital compound here on Saturday (Oct 20), Ramziah said Asman was part of the search team along with members of the police force and firemen and had taken his shirt and shoes off.

"They (Asman and his wife) accompanied Samsul's body in the police truck to the hospital," she said.

On Friday, Asman and his wife arrived at the Penang Hospital Forensic Department at 6.20pm and Asman looked dishevelled with his body covered in mud and not wearing any shoes,

Asman told Bernama that he received a call from one of Samsul's friends, telling him to go to the landslide site.

"I learnt about the incident after Friday prayers. When I arrived home (in Sungai Nibong), my wife was crying," he said

Asman said he is a permanent resident here while his son Samsul just arrived and had been working in Malaysia for only two months.

"Samsul and his siblings lived with their grandmother in Buton Tengah, Sulawesi. Only he came to Malaysia, the rest stayed in the village," he said.

Ramsiah said the family would take Samsul's body back to Indonesia once the post-mortem process is completed.

He will be flown from Penang to Jakarta, before going on to Makasar, Kendari, and from there, taken by land to Buton.

The landslide which occurred at 1.56pm on Friday has so far claimed the lives of four foreign workers.

Three others are injured and another three are feared to be still trapped under the earth.

The incident occurred after heavy rains hit the state from Thursday afternoon to noon Friday, causing the landslide in the container and kongsi area of the Bukit Kukus paired road construction site. – Bernama