JOHOR BARU – The lone hiker lost in Gunung Pulai yesterday near Pulai Hijauan Skudai here has been rescued.
Johor Forestry Department director Datuk Salim Aman said in a statement that the hiker was found about 400m from the location he conveyed in an emergency call.
He also advised amateur hikers to not go into permanent forest reserves without permits from the department.
The agencies involved in the search-and-rescue operation were Johor forest rangers, police, Fire and Rescue Department, Civil Defence Force, Pekan Nenas Adun service centre and various civil society groups.
Yesterday, operations commander from the Skudai Fire and Rescue Station Mohd Khairi Zainuddin said an emergency call about the incident was received at 8.53pm before nine firefighters were dispatched to the scene.
He said the hiker, Lee Chin Chai, 56, started his ascent at 7am the day before, after getting directions from a friend and reportedly used a shortcut to get to the top of the mountain.
“However, at 7pm, his worried sister contacted his friends through WhatsApp and sent pictures to get information about her brother.
“The victim called his sister at 8pm and stated that he had lost his way and managed to give his last location via WhatsApp, but said his phone was almost out of battery,” the senior assistant fire superintendent said in a statement.
“However, on arrival, the victim was nowhere to be seen at the location, so the army fired three shots to get the hiker’s attention.
“Meanwhile, SAJ conducted a search in the lake area by boat at a distance of 15km from the last location of the missing victim but he has yet to be found.” – The Vibes, December 20, 2022
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