17 hours ago
Emotionally Challenging But Duty Calls
M
ohd Azizan Aziz was exhausted after driving back to Gerik, Perak, from Terengganu in the early hours of June 9.
Still, the Gerik Fire and Rescue Station chief decided to stop at his workplace where he had been based since 2021. It was not unusual for him to go to work outside of his duty hours as he lived alone (his wife and children reside in Jerteh, Terengganu).
As he neared the station, he sensed that something was amiss – the atmosphere hinted at an unfolding emergency. Coincidentally, it was at that very moment the station received the grim news of a horrific road accident on the East-West Highway (JRTB).
'Just as I arrived, a fire engine was leaving the station compound,' Mohd Azizan told Bernama, adding that what he was about to witness would turn out to be the most devastating and heartbreaking case he had encountered in his nine years of service as a rescue personnel.
One of the deadliest crashes in the country in over a decade, the Gerik accident claimed the lives of 15 students from Universiti Perguruan Sultan Idris (UPSI). It involved a tour bus and a multipurpose vehicle and occurred near Tasik Banding, about 60 kilometres from the Gerik fire station, on the East-West Highway.
The bus was chartered by a group of 42 UPSI students from Jerteh and the crash occurred while they were on their way back to their campus in Tanjung Malim, Perak, after celebrating Hari Raya Aidiladha with their families back home.
MENTAL STRENGTH ESSENTIAL
Mohd Azizan said in any emergency, the head of rescue operations plays a critical role as all actions taken are based on the decisions and initial assessments made by that officer.
He also emphasised the importance of strong mental resilience for all rescue team members during such operations.
Mohd Azizan Aziz.
'Each member must learn to suppress their emotions in order to carry out rescue efforts effectively,' he said, adding the Gerik tragedy was the first time he had encountered an accident involving such a large number of casualties and fatalities.
He said the June 9 crash was the second most challenging operation he and his team had carried out along the East-West Highway over the last four months.
'Indeed, many accident cases requiring complex operations occur along this stretch. On Feb 8, I was involved in a rescue operation to extricate a trailer driver and his assistant who were trapped… the trailer had skidded and overturned into a drain. One victim died at the scene while the other was injured,' he said.
In the fatal bus crash, the fire and rescue team had to cut open the roof of the vehicle to extricate victims, some of whom were found piled on top of one another.
CHAOS IN THE DARK
Recalling the incident, rescue operations commander Senior Fire Officer II Kamarul Ariffin Abd Ghani said they received the report of the crash at 1.04 am on June 9.
'Before we got the call, we were all busy with administrative tasks, with some of us completing reports of previous cases to be entered into the system, and doing other routine work.
Kamarul Ariffin Abd Ghani.
'(Once we got the call) I and nine other personnel rushed to the scene. On the way, we tried to contact the caller who had reported the incident but were unsuccessful,' he told Bernama.
He said the initial report did not convey the full extent of the crash but as a precaution, he contacted the Perak Fire and Rescue Department's operations centre to request additional support from the Jeli Fire and Rescue Station in Kelantan.
'We arrived at the scene at 2.05 am and only then did we see the true scale of the crash... it was massive and we clearly needed more assistance,' he said, adding the situation was chaotic – the area was dark and some members of the public could be seen trying to help the victims. The rescuers could also hear the cries of the injured echoing through the air.
Admitting he was overcome with sorrow upon seeing the bodies of the deceased, with the food packed by their families scattered around them, Kamarul Ariffin said: 'It was heartbreaking… we're human too. But we had to set aside those feelings because we had work to do.'
He said the first time he was involved in an emotionally challenging operation was during the search for victims of the 2004 tsunami.
'At that time, I was stationed in Penang. We were tasked with searching for victims in the sea and we found five bodies, all in incomplete condition.'
HOSPITALS ON ALERT
Meanwhile, at Hospital Gerik, located about an hour's drive from the June 9 crash site, its Emergency Department entered critical response mode as soon as news of the crash came in.
Dr Muhammad Adam Muskhan, who led the emergency operations, said due to the scale of the accident, the hospital activated the Mass Casualty Incident (MCI) emergency code, with measures taken including adding beds in all three emergency zones – red, yellow and green.
Dr Muhammad Adam Muskhan.
'Prior to that, we had also informed the Emergency Departments at Taiping Hospital and Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital (Ipoh) so both could prepare to assist,' he told Bernama.
According to Dr Muhammad Adam, they received initial information about the incident at around 1 am but the real challenge began at 3.18 am when the first casualty arrived.
'When the victims started arriving, we conducted triage before directing them to the appropriate treatment zones, with the red zone designated for critical cases,' he said, adding some victims were referred to nearby hospitals for further treatment.
He also said although the accident occurred during a public holiday, when many staff members were on leave, all preparations were carried out swiftly and in an orderly manner.
'I was proud of our team's efficiency. I've dealt with several MCI situations with them before but this was the largest and most challenging as it required reinforcements and support from other agencies and external parties,' he added, noting that they were also assisted by personnel from Hospital Jeli and nearby government health clinics.
Meanwhile, Civil Defence Force (APM) ambulance driver Corporal Mohd Zamri Taib, who was among those who ferried the Gerik crash casualties to the hospital, expressed gratitude for the training and simulation exercises he had undergone in the past.
'Although the conditions during training are never quite the same as a real-life situation, the knowledge and skills I gained during those sessions really helped me during the actual operation,' he said.
He said on the way to the crash site, he had a feeling the accident was not an ordinary one as there were unusually few vehicles on the road.
UPSI bus incident bring conscience to frontline staff.
'Usually, the East-West Highway is busy with traffic, especially during public holidays and festive seasons. But that early morning, hardly any vehicle passed by us.
'My three colleagues and I in the ambulance started wondering what the actual situation was at the scene. Even so, I was still taken aback when we arrived and saw the large number of victims,' he recalled.
He and his team wasted no time and immediately began the task of extricating the injured from the scene and transporting them to the hospital after providing initial treatment.
Making two trips from the crash site to Hospital Gerik, Mohd Zamri said in his 14 years of service with APM, this was the one incident that truly left a deep mark on him.
