Floods in Pahang claim first victim: Father drowns, son still missing

KUANTAN: The floods in Pahang claimed its first victim when a staff at thef Jerantut District Forestry Department Office drowned, while his son went missing while wading through floodwaters in Kampung Gintong, about 100km from here last night.

Jerantut Police chief Supt Mazlan Hassan said the victim, Zulkarnain Hitam, 58, was found drowned at 10.30 pm, believed after being washed away by a strong current while walking home with his three sons after removing their family car to higher ground.

One of his sons, Ukai Iskandar, 23, who is a student of Universiti Malaysia Pahang in Gambang here, was also washed away and yet to be found.

“All of them were believed to have walked home from Kampung Gintong to Taman Perdana, about two kilometres from where they left their car,” he told Bernama when contacted.

Mazlan said the other two sons, aged 13 and 15, managed to be saved by the villagers.

The search for Ukai Iskandar, which began at 11 pm yesterday, had to be temporarily stopped at 3 am today due to bad weather.

Mazlan also advised the public to be vigilant with the development of floods and always follow the instructions of the authorities throughout the flood season to avoid untoward incidents.

-- BERNAMA