JOHOR BARU: Police will investigate the incident where two policemen from its bomb disposal unit were hit by a landslide while disposing off an old bomb found in Kluang.
State chief Comm M. Kumar said the investigation will focus on identifying the cause of the incident, including if there were any lapses in its standard operating procedure (SOP).
“Police are in the process of studying the incident. However, it is still too early for me to comment further.
“Please give some space for us to carry out a thorough investigation, including reviewing the SOP,” he said in a press conference at the Johor police headquarters here yesterday.
Comm Kumar added that the two police personnel were previously warded at the intensive care unit of the Enche’ Besar Hajjah Khalsom Kluang Hospital, but have since been transferred to a normal ward at the same hospital.
Earlier, the two police personnel sustained injuries after a landslide hit them while they were in the midst of disposing the bomb found near Taman Sri Lambak in Kluang.
Kluang OCPD Asst Comm Bahrin Mohd Noh said prior to the incident, police received a call from the public that a bomb had been found along Jalan Tabah at around 8.50am on Tuesday.
“A team from both the Johor and Kluang police bomb disposal units were deployed to the scene.
“At around 2.20pm, police received a call through the MERS 999 hotline number from our own personnel reporting that a landslide had happened at the site,” he said.
ACP Bahrin added that the initial investigation found that the landslide happened while the two personnel from the Johor police bomb disposal unit were preparing to destroy the bomb.
“It was raining before the work to dispose of the bomb started.
“The landslide caused the two personnel to be buried underneath a pile of soil and they sustained serious injuries,” he said.
ACP Bahrin said checks by a medical team found that 34-year-old Kpl Muhammad Faruuqi Shamsary sustained a fracture on his left thigh and one broken left rib.
The other policeman, Kpl/S Abdul Halim Zainal, 39, suffered a broken hip and three broken ribs, he added.
