Never forgotten: Heads and staff from several government departments observing a moment of silence.
Sabah remembers those who perished in Kinabalu quake
KOTA KINABALU: Ridwan Mohd Taib remembers the pandemonium vividly.
A fireman in the east coast Lahad Datu district, he was on leave and had gone back to his village in Kampung Lasing, some 3km from the town district.
“I was in my room when it shook so violently that it rocked our house,” said Ridwan.
“I thought of nothing but saving my family and quickly rushed them out to an open field outside the house.
“As we ran out, I saw our belongings and household items strewn all over the floor. We were grateful the earthquake did not cause any structural damage to our house,” said Ridwan, now the Ranau Fire and Rescue station chief.
He was talking about the 6.1-magnitude earthquake that struck Sabah’s hilly Ranau district nine years ago, killing 18 people and damaging many homes.
Ridwan was among those who paid their respects to the fallen at a solemn memorial service for the June 5, 2015 earthquake victims, held at Kiau Gap View, Timpohon Gate at Sabah Parks in the Kundasang highlands, about 92km from the Sabah capital.
A moment of silence was observed by those in attendance before a brass plaque, on which the names of the 18 who died were etched.
Ridwan placing a flower at the brass plaque erected near Timpohon.
The plaque was erected some 2km from Timpohon Gate, the starting point to scale the 4,101m-high Mt Kinabalu, the highest in Malaysia.
A group of Singaporean students and teachers from Tanjong Katong Primary School were killed by rock avalanches during their climb up the mountain following the 7am earthquake.The quake also claimed the lives of four Sabahan mountain guides.
Also present at the ceremony on Wednesday were heads of departments from the police force, district hospital, Sabah Parks, district office, and the information department.
A dedicated fireman, Ridwan said he was moved to help out in the search and rescue operations when he learnt that there were victims trapped on the mountain.
But at the time, he said, the department had sufficient people on the ground after it summoned its entire manpower available at the time.
“We send our condolences to the families of all the victims. The Ranau fire department is also extremely grateful for the sacrifices made by everyone involved in the incident.
“Our mountain search and rescue unit is always prepared for any eventuality, with personnel stationed daily at Mount Kinabalu,” he said.Sabah Parks director Dr Maklarin Lakim said the ceremony was held to remember the 18 lives lost in the tragedy and to respect their next of kin.
“This tragedy is a reminder to improve the standard operating procedure for climbing Mount Kinabalu.
“Several new facilities are in the pipeline, including a training centre for mountain climbing at the summit and the building of the Layang-Layang hostel at KM4 of the climb route,” he said.
