Monday, July 2, 2007

My version wasn't appear in BB since I was 'intercepted' by BB reporters. However, I managed to post it for the Malay version, Media Permata. I have a distraughting photo of the sullen and visibly shaken mother hugging her lifeless son but I wont publish it here, I have to show full respect to the aggrieving family of the victims.
I managed to extract some details of her two sons background when I have a chance to initiate a little conversation with her at the beach; the eldest one is 18 years of age and a form 4 student, I don't remember where his school was and the 12 year old (still missing-2/7/07) was schooling at St Georges in Form 1. The victims have another two sibilings, both female. My heart and condolences goes to the bereaved family. Al-Fatihah Here is my version of the story:
Weekend outing turned tragic
A weekend outing turned out to be a tragedy for five members of a closely linked relative when two of them were drowned while swimming at sea and another one was feared dead as the body of the youngest victim has yet to be found as this news went to press. The tragedy occurred at Tungku Beach Yesterday afternoon (1/7/07). The first body was spotted at around 1pm while the second victim was found at about 2.15pm at the vicinity of the sea.
The second body was discovered at about 2.15 pm
A lifeless body of the second body being stretched away
The victims were siblings aged 18 and 12 while the other victim was the sibling’s cousin aged 21. The distraught mother, a Lambak Kanan Resettlement Housing Scheme resident when met at the scene said she never expected anything terrible happened to her sons until a family member informed her of the tragic news. She said both her two sons (she has 4 children; the victims are her 1st and 3rd sons while the other two are female) and the victim’s cousin camped out overnight with their uncle and a relative for a weekend’s trip. She and her husband were expected to visit them in the late afternoon of the day.

Police force diving team ready for deployment
According to eye witnesses who were at the beach at the time of the incident, they only realized the victims were seemingly in trouble after he and other colleagues heard a commotion coming from the direction of the victims after a big wave apparently came crashing on them while they were still out at sea. Seconds after the wave hit the shore; three of them went missing while the other two managed to scramble to safety.

The Royal Brunei Police Force, Fire and Rescue Department and Royal Brunei Armed Forces Naval personnel were involved in the search and rescue mission immediately after they received an emergency call. Diving teams and jet skies were also dispatched to reinforce the mission to locate the missing victims.

Percutian hujung minggu berakhir dengan tragedi (mp-2/7/07)

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, Ahad – Percutian hujung minggu bagi lima saudara berakhir dengan tragedi apabila dua daripada mereka mati lemas ketika bermandi-manda di pantai manakala seorang lagi masih hilang. Kejadian yang menyedihkan itu berlaku di Pantai Tungku tengahari tadi (1/7/07). Mayat pertama dijumpai sekitar jam 1 petang manakala mayat kedua ditemui sekitar jam 2.15 petang tidak jauh dari mayat pertama dijumpai.

Mangsa adalah sepasang adik-beradik berusia 18 and 12 tahun sementara mangsa ketiga adalah sepupu kepada pasangan adik-beradik itu yang berusia 21 tahun. Ibu kepada mangsa yang malang itu, berasal dari Skim Perpindahan Lambak Kanan ketika dijumpai ditempat kejadian memberitahu pihak media yang beliau tidak menyangka sama sekali sesuatu perkara buruk telah terjadi kepada kedua-dua anaknya ketika menerima panggilan dari ahli keluarga terdekat tentang kejadian itu.

Keluarga sabar menanti' kepulangan' orang yang tersayang
Beliau berkata kedua-dua anaknya (beliau mempunyai 4 orang anak; para mangsa adalah anak pertama dan ketiga; disamping itu beliau ada 2 orang anak perempuan) berserta sepupu mereka, 21 tahun (mayat pertama ditemui) mengambil keputusan menyertai bapa saudara dan seorang lagi ahli keluarga lain berkemah di pantai pada malam minggu bagi menghabiskan cuti hujung minggu. Beliau dan suaminya bercadang untuk melawat kedua-dua anaknya pada petang hari yang sama tetapi hajat mereka tidak kesampaian apabila anak sulung mereka menemui ajalnya manakala adiknya belum dijumpai lagi sehingga berita ini ditulis.
Mengikut para saksi yang berada ditempat kejadian berkata mereka hanya menyedari sesuatu tidak baik berlaku apabila mereka terdengar suara riuh rendah yang datangnya dari arah laut. Sebelum kejadian itu, ombak besar dilihat menghempas pantai dan para mangsa dipercayai dipukul ombak itu ketika mereka leka mandi. Mereka menganggarkan lima orang mandi ketika itu dan beberapa saat selepas ombak menghempas pantai, hanya dua orang kelihatan berjaya menyelamatkan diri manakala tiga orang lagi hilang dan dipercayai dihanyutkan arus deras.
Pasukan jet ski Bomba dan Penyelamat dikerah membantu
Pasukan keselamatan sedang menggiatkan usaha mencari dan menyelamat dimana ketiga-tiga mangsa dilaporkan mandi manda
Pasukan Polis DiRaja Brunei, Jabatan Bomba dan Penyelamat dan juga sepasukan anggota dari Angkatan Bersenjata DiRaja Brunei telah terlibat dalam usaha mencari dan menyelamat para mangsa sejurus menerima panggilan kecemasan. Pasukan menyelam dan anggota jet ski juga dikerah untuk membantu bagi mengesan mereka yang hilang.