Family injured in Gerik crash: Mother recalls chilling phone call from son
Norlian Abd, 58, said she initially tried returning a missed call from her son, Mohd Lutfi Radzi, 37, only to receive a chilling response.
"He told me, 'Mak, don't be shocked. We were in an accident and are now at Hospital Baling'," she recalled.
Lutfi, a teacher, was returning home from his wife's hometown in Terengganu with his wife, Nurul Ain Zakaria, 35, and their two children, Nur Aisyah Nafishah, 6, and Muhammad Ahsan Nafis, 2, when their Perodua Alza collided with a bus along the East-West Highway (Jalan Raya Timur-Barat) in the early hours of the morning.
Norlian said the call came in late, at 8.39am, she believed her son delayed it because he was worried she would be overwhelmed by the news.
"He even asked if I had seen the viral video of the crash. I hadn't.
"But later, when I did, I couldn't bear to watch it until the end. It broke my heart," she said when met at her home in Pondok Ustaz Bakar, Parit Panjang.
Norlian said she managed to visit her daughter-in-law and grandchildren at Baling Hospital later in the day.
"Nurul Ain sustained serious injuries to her left ribs, while Nur Aisyah's right leg is broken.
"Thankfully, Ahsan escaped with no major injuries after falling into a drain.
"He has undergone an X-ray.
Mohd Lutfi has been discharged but is staying on to care for his wife and children.
"I'm thankful they survived, even though the car was badly damaged."
She said both her son and daughter-in-law are schoolteachers who live nearby and often leave their youngest child in her care while they are at work.
"They had gone back to Terengganu to celebrate Hari Raya Aidiladha with Nurul Ain's family.
"They were supposed to be back here today," she said.
However, Norlian expressed sadness that she and other family members were not allowed to visit the family in the ward due to hospital restrictions.
"I only managed to drop off diapers for the little one earlier.
"It was heartbreaking to learn that 15 students had died in the same crash," she said.
Earlier, a tour bus carrying Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI) students crashed along the East-West Highway near Tasik Banding, Gerik, while en route from Jerteh, Besut, to Tanjung Malim, Perak.
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