Five dead after helicopter crashes in northern Sarawak
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Four Malaysian health ministry personnel and one pilot were on board the BO-105 helicopter.
PHOTO: SARAWAK EDISI KHAS/FACEBOOK
- A helicopter crashed near Long Lellang STOLport in northern Sarawak on Sept 8, killing all five people on board - comprising four healthcare personnel and one pilot.
- The helicopter was part of the Flying Doctor Service programme, carrying a medical officer, assistant medical officer, two nurses and the pilot on official duty.
- The crash deeply affected families and communities, with the doctor identified as Dr Ainul Baroah Kamaruddin; Long Lellang serves remote Kelabit and Penan communities.
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KUCHING – All five people on board were killed when a helicopter crashed near the Long Lellang STOLport (short take-off and landing airport) in the interior of Marudi district in northern Sarawak on Sept 8.
According to initial information from the Miri Airport Fire and Rescue Services (AFRS), the helicopter crashed near the end of the airstrip at Long Lellang at about 3.40pm.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia said it was a BO-105 helicopter with the registration number 9M-LLF. It added that it had received notification of the incident from the Flight Information Service at 3.58pm.
Bernama quoted Miri Division resident and chairman of the Miri Division Disaster Management Committee Galong Luang as confirming that all five people on board had died in the crash.
Malaysia’s Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad revealed that four ministry personnel and one pilot were on board the helicopter.
The healthcare personnel were part of the Flying Doctor Service programme.
Dzulkefly said the healthcare personnel comprised a medical officer, an assistant medical officer and two nurses who were on official duty.
The doctor has been identified as Dr Ainul Baroah Kamaruddin from Kelantan.
Her sister-in-law, Nureez Mohd Pauzi, confirmed Dr Ainul’s death in a Facebook post following the crash.
“The Health Ministry helicopter carrying Kak Nureez’s sister-in-law crashed in Miri. I am getting ready to head to the airport,” she wrote in a Facebook post on Sept 8.
She also posted a video of herself boarding a plane heading for Sarawak in a Facebook story.
The identities of the other four on board have not been confirmed.
Located about 310km from Miri, the Long Lellang STOLport serves the rural area of Long Lellang, including some of Sarawak’s most remote Kelabit and Penan communities.
The STOLport is located next to Long Lellang village. THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK