Family of police officer involved in chopper crash relieved he's on path to recovery
JOHOR BARU: The family of Supt Ahmad Bustamin Baharom, who was among five injured in a police helicopter crash at Sungai Pulai during a mock nuclear training exercise yesterday, is relieved that he is on track for recovery.
Following the accident on Thursday (July 10), his 82-year-old father, Baharum Mohammed, and mother, Che Ma Abu Bakar, 75, set off from their home in Alor Setar, Kedah at 10pm and arrived at Hospital Sultanah Aminah (HSA) around 8am to visit him.
"Before the exercise, he called me and said he was about to board the helicopter. Then we both prayed for his safety.
"Not long after, I was shocked to receive a call from the authorities that the helicopter my son was in had crashed into the water," said Baharum when met after visiting his son at the hospital on Friday (July 11).
He added that despite the chaos of the crash, his 46-year-old son managed to get out of the submerged helicopter before help arrived.
"The police informed us that my son was the first one to be rescued from the water. Some of the victims were unconscious during the incident.
"We are thankful that he remained conscious throughout and was able to speak to us when we visited," he said, adding that Supt Ahmad sustained injuries to his back, including fractured ribs and facial swelling.
Baharom, a retired school principal, said Supt Ahmad is his second out of five children, and he has four children of his own, aged nine to 16.
Earlier, Bukit Aman Air Operations Force Deputy Commander (Operations) Senior Asst Comm Ahmad Lokman Abdul Hadi visited the victims at around 10am, followed by Iskandar Puteri OCPD Asst Comm M. Kumarasan about an hour later.
On Thursday, the Eurocopter AS3555 Ecureuil crashed about 21m from the jetty while performing an exercise attended by personnel from Singapore, Indonesia, and Thailand.
Two senior police officers with the rank of Assistant Commissioner and Superintendent, along with three other personnel, were sent to Hospital Sultanah Aminah shortly after the 10.25am incident.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
4 hours ago
- The Star
Car in Muar river: 'We thought it was a prank,' say family of missing man
MUAR: What was initially thought to be one of a man's usual pranks took a worrying turn for his family when his vehicle was found in Sungai Tui along Jalan Bukit Kepong here on Tuesday (July 15). Motoring influencer Tengku Nizaruddin Tengku Zainudin, 38, better known as Ija Nizaruddin, was reported missing after the Perodua Axia he was driving was found submerged in the river this evening, with no trace of him inside. His younger brother, Tengku Abdul Aziz, 30, said they last met around 2 pm yesterday after travelling separately from Johor Baru to Muar. "We left Johor Baru in separate vehicles for business purposes. I went to a different place, while my brother told me he wanted to go to his friend's workshop in Parit Jawa. "My family last heard from him at around 4 pm, but after that, they couldn't reach him,' he said when contacted by Bernama on Tuesday. He said both he and his sister-in-law reached out to the workshop owner but were told that his brother never showed up. "At first, we thought he was pulling a prank as usual, but started to get worried when we couldn't reach him and the vehicle was found not far from where we last met,' he said. Earlier, Pagoh Fire and Rescue Station operations commander Senior Fire Officer I Nor Alfatah Omar said they received an emergency call about the incident at 3.22pm. He said the team arrived at the scene at about 3.51pm and discovered that a Perodua Axia had plunged into a river about two metres deep. Meanwhile, Muar OCPD Asst Comm Raiz Mukhliz Azman Aziz said search efforts were still ongoing. He urged witnesses to contact the police to assist in the investigation.- Bernama
The Star
7 hours ago
- The Star
Man nabbed for allegedly threatening DBKL officers with parang
KUALA LUMPUR: A man has been arrested after brandishing a weapon at DBKL officers during a raid here. The incident occurred in Desa Pandan during Ops Roboh, an operation targeting illegal structures along footpaths. "At 11.17am on Tuesday (July 15) the suspect approached with a parang and hurled insults at officers. "A knife was seized and the 43-year-old suspect was arrested," said Wangsa Maju OCPD Asst Comm Mohamad Lazim Ismail in a statement. The case is being investigated under Section 353 of the Penal Code for using criminal force to deter a public servant from discharge of his duty A video of the man brandishing the weapon has been uploaded on social media with him heard shouting at people off-camera.
The Star
13 hours ago
- The Star
QuickCheck: Did two Tawau drug suspects ram a police car in a failed bid to flee?
CAR chases are exciting, and potentially, dangerous affairs and videos of such incidents often go viral on social media. One such incident caught on camera shows a four-wheel drive vehicle ramming a police car and colliding with several civilian vehicles before being intercepted, and two suspects were arrested. Is it true that such a car chase occurred in Tawau, as alleged in captions and comments on the viral video? Verdict: TRUE Tawau deputy OCPD Superintendent Champin Piuh confirmed the incident, saying that two drug addicts, including a teenager, rammed a police car and collided with several civilian vehicles in a desperate attempt to evade arrest. He said that the suspects were eventually apprehended after police cornered their vehicle during the incident, which took place at around 1.45pm on Sunday (July 13), near the Batu 3 industrial area at Jalan Apas. Supt Champin said, in a statement Monday (July 14), that a team from the Narcotics Criminal Investigation Division had been pursuing the suspects as part of Ops Tapis, a drug enforcement operation. Officers had earlier spotted a four-wheel drive vehicle being driven suspiciously and attempted to intercept it. 'As the police attempted to stop the vehicle, the suspects became aggressive, ramming the police car and crashing into several civilian vehicles,' said Supt Champin in a statement posted on the Tawau district police Facebook page on Monday (July 14). The incident, which occurred at a traffic light junction, was recorded by bystanders and has since gone viral on social media, drawing widespread concern over the suspects' reckless behaviour. The suspects fled towards Jalan Apas, continuing to drive recklessly and hitting more vehicles along the route before being surrounded and arrested. A search of the vehicle uncovered a fabric bag under the handbrake containing two transparent plastic packets of crystalline substances, believed to be syabu (methamphetamine) weighing about 5.13g, with an estimated street value of RM400. Subsequent tests revealed that both suspects, identified as a 25-year-old local man and an 18-year-old foreigner, tested positive for amphetamine and methamphetamine. The case is being investigated under Section 39A(1) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, and police are continuing efforts to track down other individuals who may be involved. 'Police will not tolerate individuals who act aggressively, break the law, and endanger the lives of other road users,' Champin said. He also urged the public not to shelter or cooperate with drug dealers and encouraged anyone with information on criminal or drug-related activity to come forward via official police channels. 'Public cooperation is vital in helping us combat crime, especially drug trafficking, which remains a major threat to community safety,' he added. He said the public can relay information to the Tawau district police headquarters or contact the 24-hour hotline at 089-772 121 or via the Volunteer Smartphone Patrol (VSP) app.
