Z
Zhang He
Guest
Monday November 22, 2010
Heroic teen drowns after saving friend
KUALA TERENGGANU: The selfless act of a teenager who dived into a river at a picnic site in Hulu Besut to save his friend in trouble turned out to be his last. Ahmad Mustapha Mat, 18, drowned after he was overcome by strong currents in the river at the Tembakah recreational site yesterday after pulling his friend to safety.
Besut OCPD Supt Kamaruddin Mohd Zakaria said Ahmad, from Kampung Kulim Hilir, Pasir Puteh in Kelantan, had gone to the site with 13 others in a motorcycle convoy. He said that upon arriving at the site, three members of the group went for a swim while others busied themselves setting up camp.
Supt Kamaruddin said at about 12.10pm, the group noticed one of their friends struggling in the water.
He said Ahmad had swum to his friend’s aid while others waited on the riverbank for them to resurface. Ahmad, he added, managed to drag his friend Mohd Zulhi Awang, 22, to safety before getting into trouble with the strong currents. “The boy failed to re-emerge from the water, following which his friends decided to alert district Civil Defence personnel,” he said. Rescue workers recovered Ahmad’s body at about 4pm.
