SIMUNJAN: The body of a 19-year-old Indonesian, who fell into a large drain at an oil palm plantation in the early morning of New Year’s Day, has been found by a search and rescue team.
The body of the teenager, identified as Rendi, was discovered by the search party at 11:45 am today, 1.5 kilometres from where he fell and slipped from a narrow wooden bridge.
The body has been handed over to the police for further action, and the operations ended at 1:00 pm.
According to the Sarawak Fire and Rescue Department (Bomba), the incident occurred at around 4:00 am on January 1 (Thursday).
The person who reported the incident, a friend of the teenager, said they were on their way back to the plantation in Kampung Sagu, Sebuyau, after celebrating and ushering in the New Year.
“According to the informant, while crossing a large drainage canal via a narrow wooden bridge that was submerged due to rising water levels, the victim, identified as Rendi, slipped and fell into the drain.
“The friend attempted to rescue the victim but was unable to save him as the water current was too strong,” Bomba said in a statement.
The informant then contacted other friends and informed them that Rendi had fallen into the drain.
They searched for the teenager but to no avail before lodging a police report.
The Simunjan Fire and Rescue Station later received a call from the police regarding the incident and immediately began search and rescue operations this morning.
