By Wilfred Pilo
KUCHING, Aug 31: Five people including four journalists escaped unscathed when the floors of a 40-year-old house on stilt, where they were standing, gave way and collapsed five feet to the ground.
The victims, including a staff of Rajah Charles Brooke Memorial Hospital (RCBM) here, were slightly shaken by the ordeal, with two of the reporters suffering slight bruises on their hands, faces and legs.
The four reporters, from DayakDaily, The Borneo Post, Suara Sarawak and The New Sarawak Tribune, were at location covering Batu Kitang assemblyman Lo Khere Chiang, who was giving welfare assistance to the family of 87-year-old Dinit Banying at Kampung Sinar Baru, Jalan Puncak Borneo in Padawan.
“This kind of incident is one of those unforeseen circumstances faced by reporters in their daily duties and despite no injuries, hopefully this incident calls for immediate attention and intervention by the authorities to assist the needy and poor in Sarawak,” Lo said when commenting on the state of the house during the media visit.
On a positive note, he described the unfortunate incident as a blessing in disguise for Dinit to raise her plight and immediate need for assistance.
“We need to provide assistance to people who are facing poverty, have a lot of hardship and living in dilapidated houses such as what we see today,” continued Lo, who stood just a few feet away when the incident happened.
The elected representative immediately called for a contractor to repair the collapse section of the house, where damages also affected the toilet and washroom.
RCBM Heritage Society president Angelina Jong was present. — DayakDaily
