A boy drowned while five others were pulled out after a van ferrying children home slid into a septic pond at Taman Universiti in Johor Baru.
Mohamad Hanafi Jaafar, 46, who lives near where Tadika Kemas Kaisara is located, said he rushed out to help kindergarten helper Musliza Kasun prevent the van from sliding but failed.
He then jumped into the pond to pull the children out.
“With the help of neighbours, I managed to pull out five children,” he said.
“But, to our horror, there was still one child still inside the sinking van,” he said at the site of the 11.30am tragedy yesterday.
Five-year-old Muhammad Azri Aqif died while being rushed to a clinic after the incident.
Musliza, 35, said she was helping the six children into the van when it suddenly began reversing.
“It all happened so fast,” she mentioned.
“I tried my best to prevent the van from sliding by holding onto the door. But I just could not stop it,” she said while sobbing.
“Parents waiting to pick up their children at the kindergarten came to my aid, but eventually, we could only watch helplessly as the van crashed through the gate leading to the pond,” she added.
Another child, Nur Aima Abd Razak, also five, was admitted to the Sultanah Aminah Hospital in a critical condition.
The girl’s father said his daughter was unconscious. “However, doctors said her condition has improved,” he said.
Teacher Siti Nora Daim, 33, said it happened minutes after she had finished teaching the children.
Muhammad Azri’s father Azhar Yusoff, 37, said his deceased son would be taken to their hometown in Kuala Terengganu for burial.
Johor Baru (North) OCPD Asst Comm Mohd Khamsani Abd Rahman said initial investigations revealed that the van was parked and the woman driver was outside the vehicle when it suddenly slid down.
She has been held for questioning.
[Source]
