Flash flood survivor recounts losing sister in Sungai Sedim tragedy

Nur Afizul Abdullah, 21, recounted the terrifying moments of a flash flood at Sungai Sedim, Kulim, which claimed the lives of his sister, Nur Atikah Abdullah, 28, his nephew Muhammad Aariz Daniel, 3, and another boy, Muhammad Uzair Ahmadi Hussain, 12. He had arrived from Penang for a family picnic just 30 minutes before the disaster struck.

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I saw two women clinging to tree roots before I rescued them. My hope at that time was that one of them was my sister, but it wasn't.

Abdullah described how he saw his sister struggling in the powerful current, holding onto their three-year-old nephew. He plunged into the river to help, managing to hold onto his sister, but the relentless water and a drifting log caused her to lose her grip. He then managed to save two teenage girls who were clinging to tree roots.

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My sister and about 15 other family members arrived earlier. They were happy, and many were swimming, including my younger siblings and my small nieces and nephews.

After reaching safety, Abdullah searched the riverbank and found his sister. He performed CPR for about half an hour, but she showed no response. Her hands were already blue, her stomach distended, and her eyes unmoving. He noted her head was bleeding, likely from hitting rocks in the strong current, before she was pronounced dead.

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I immediately entered the river and held onto my sister, and she clung to my body, but her grip slipped because the water was too strong and she was hit by a drifting log.