KUCHING, Aug 29: A climb up Mount Santubong by a group of hikers ended in tragic circumstances when one of them, weighing about 160kg, collapsed after experiencing breathing difficulties and died at Summit 4.5 this evening.
The Fire and Rescue Department (Bomba) operations centre received an emergency call at 5.20pm and immediately despatched a team of 23 firefighters from two shifts led by Petra Jaya fire station officer PKPgB Azaharul Sahar to the scene.
According to Azaharul, the deceased, identified as Muhammad Hazwan Bakar, 24, and two others started climbing the mountain at about 7.30am.
At Summit 4.5, the victim complained of breathing difficulties and the group were forced to stop.
“When firefighters arrived at the scene, they administered cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) but the deceased was unresponsive.
“Due to his weight, the attempt to bring the deceased down with a stretcher was not easy, on top of having to descend steep and hilly areas,” he said.
It took the firefighters two hours before everyone including the deceased’s fellow male and female hikers safely reached the foot of the mountain.
The deceased was pronounced dead by medical officers at 9.16pm and his body was handed over to the police for further action. — DayakDaily
