Malaysia landslide update: The death toll in the Malaysia landslide reached 31 on Saturday after the body of the last victim was recovered by the authorities. According to the officials, the incident occurred on Friday night, December 16, when more than 90 people were sleeping on an organic farm tumbled from a road about 30 meters above the site and covered about 1 hectare. They said that the landowners did not have a proper license to run a campground.
Meanwhile, after a week of the rescue operation, it found a final victim from the incident site. According to the news agency Xinhua, the victims aged between seven and 12, was found about four meters from a popular campsite in Selangor state. The authorities have also released a list of victims, with some teachers and students coming from local schools. The youngest victim was one year old, while the oldest was 67 years old. Eleven of the victims were children.
Operator has government approval to run an organic farm
It is currently the season for monsoon rains in Malaysia, and the country’s government development minister, Nga Kor Ming, said all campsites nationwide that are near rivers, waterfalls and hillsides would be closed for a week to assess their safety. Suffian, the district police chief, said the victims entered the area, a popular recreational site for locals to pitch or rent tents from the farm, on Wednesday.
The campsite is not far from the Genting Highlands hill resort, a popular tourist destination with theme parks and Malaysia’s only casino.
After visiting the site late Friday, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced a special payment to the families of those killed as well as survivors.
Nga told local media that the campsite has been operating illegally for the past two years. The operator has government approval to run an organic farm but has no license for camping activities, he said. If found guilty, Nga warned, the camp operator could face up to three years in prison and a fine.
(With inputs from agencies)
Also Read: Malaysia: Landslide at campground kills 21, about a dozen missing in Batang Kali
