THE Sarawak Fire and Rescue Department went beyond its call of duty when personnel helped to ferry a coffin from an inundated longhouse in Kanowit district in central Sarawak.
The Kanowit rescue teams were on evacuation missions in flooded areas when they found out about a funeral that was disrupted.
The coffin could not be taken out from the longhouse for burial ceremony at a local church.
The coffin was stranded at longhouse Rumah Guntur in the outskirts of Kanowit district for two days due to floods measuring more than a metre high.
The rescue teams promptly offered to transport the coffin in a rescue boat, said Bomba Kanowit in an updated report.
The rescuers also transported the family members out to accompany the deceased man to the funeral ceremony.
The coffin and the family entourage were safely taken by rescue boats to the Sungai Kanowit bridge.
From there, the rescuers unloaded the coffin at a jetty and family members took over for the funeral service.
Central Sarawak districts of Kapit, Kanowit, Song and Tatau are badly flooded due to torrential rain since two days ago. – March 22, 2024
