1 killed, 4 others feared buried alive after landslide in Cameron Highlands

KUANTAN — A landslide in Malaysia's Cameron Highlands early on Jan 26 killed a man, while another four people are feared to have been buried alive.

The five victims are Myanmar nationals aged 25 to 56, the Cameron Highlands District Disaster Management Committee told Malaysian media.

The incident occurred at Batu 54 in Blue Valley, a small town in the popular hilly tourist destination Cameron Highlands.

Director of Pahang Fire and Rescue Department Haji Wan Mohammad Zaidi Wan Isa said in a statement that the search and rescue operations are ongoing after the department received a distress call at 2.51am.

The victims are believed to have been living in a house that was hit by the landslide, according to an officer deployed to the site.

The body of a 36-year-old man was found lifeless at about 3am, The Star reported.

Another three adult men and one adult woman are still buried under the rubble, said Dr Zaidi.

The department had mobilised Malaysia's special tactical operation and rescue team, special forces from the states of Perak, Selangor, and Kuala Lumpur as well as tracker dogs from the K9 unit, Dr Zaidi added.

Assistant director of operations Ismail Abdul Ghani told Bernama that nine firemen who first arrived at the site had to walk about 3km to get to the scene.

The site can only be accessed by four-wheel vehicles due to the landslide, The Star reported.

The Cameron Highlands Fire and Rescue station was notified of another landslide that occurred in Ulu Sungai Palas on Jan 25, but there were no casualties or property damage, according to Dr Zaidi.

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This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.