Tuesday November 2, 2010
Rubber tapper stung to death
By R.S.N. MURALI
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KEMAMAN: A rubber tapper was stung to death by a swarm of bees while his 51-year-old wife was injured at their smallholding in Kampong Tanah, Pasir Gajah here. Din Ali, 54, died on the way to hospital here while Khersiyah Engku Hassan, who was stung about 120 times, survived the ordeal.
The couple had started their daily rubber tapping routine at 6.30am and were believed to have been stung at about 11am. Khersiyah, when met at her home in Kampung Tanah, said she could not understand why the bees attacked them as they did not provoke them.
“It happened all so suddenly. My husband and I were screaming and couldn’t even flail our arms or do anything. “ We were just helpless,” Khersiyah said, adding that her husband ran to a nearby pond with hundreds of the bees covering his body but he collapsed after a short distance. “I only could hear his screams but could not do much to help as I was also in pain,” she said.
She said her husband had suffered from other aliments, including acute diabetes. Khersiyah said some foreign workers, who heard their screams, ran to their aid and covered them with blankets. “The workers were also stung but they managed to pull us to a nearby hut,” she said.
She added that the foreigners contacted other villagers who sent them to the Kemaman Hospital but Din died on the way there. “I still can’t believe that bees have taken the life of my husband,” she said. “What am I going to do without him?” she asked. The couple has five children, aged between six and 18.
