Body of 11th landslide victim recovered in Penang

Silhouettes of workers on a construction site. — DayakDaily.com file pic. // Photo: Pixabay

GEORGE TOWN, Oct 23: All victims in Saturday’s fatal landslide at Tanjung Bungah here have been located, following the discovery and recovery of the 11th and last victim earlier this morning.

State secretary Datuk Seri Farizan Darus said the body of Malaysian site supervisor Yuan Kuok Wern was removed from the site at 11.18am and taken to the Penang Hospital mortuary, reports The Star.

He added now that all 11 victims had been accounted for, the K9 units would be brought in to ensure that there are no other victims.

The body of Yuan, 27, was located at 7.13am, just 10 minutes after the body of Bangladeshi worker, Mohamad Monirul Islam was successfully recovered by the search and rescue (SAR) operation team, reported the New Straits Times earlier today.

However, Yuan’s body was pinned under much debris, including a steel pillar which increased the difficulty of recovering it.

The fatal landslide struck the construction site on Saturday morning, killing and burying 11 men, mostly foreign workers.

Three other workers escaped with injuries and have had their statements recorded by the police.

Earlier yesterday, the Fire and Rescue Department revised the number of victims from the initial 14 down to 11, after checks revealed that three of the men escaped with their lives.

The Penang state government has come under severe criticism from the state opposition and local residents following the landslide.