Teacher is hero to 4 teens he saves from drowning in irrigation canal

The teacher fought strong currents to rescue the four teenagers from drowning in Kampung Gajah, Bota, Perak, yesterday.

IPOH: A teacher has become the darling of social media after saving four girls from drowning in an irrigation canal in Kampung Gajah, Bota, near here yesterday.

Muhammad Nor Imran Maula Abd Jalil was on his way home from Kuala Kangsar to Hutan Melintang at 12.20pm when a drenched teenage girl stopped his car, asking for help.

“I saw four people struggling in the canal, fighting against the strong current.

“Two of the teenagers were clinging onto the branches, while the other two were swept away by the strong currents.

“I jumped in and rescued them first. One of them was already unconscious by then,” he said when contacted by Bernama here today.

Imran said by then the other two teenagers had also been swept away by the strong current after the branches they were clinging to broke. He went after them and managed to rescue them.

“Coincidentally, a couple passing by stopped and performed CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) on the unconscious girl. Thank God, she recovered,” he said, adding that he immediately informed the nearest police station.

Imran, 31, said he later found out that the four teenagers were inside a car which skidded and plunged into the canal.

Imran is a teacher at Sekolah Rendah Agama Rakyat Muhammadiah, Bukit Lintang.

He said he did not give much thought to his own safety when he dived into the canal at Kampung Teluk Sena, Kampung Gajah.

“I was gasping a little for air and very tired, but it was very important to me to save those teenagers.”

He said his pair of tight jeans also impaired the rescue work.

Imran said this was not the first time he had saved people from drowning, but didn’t give details.

Perak Tengah district police chief Barudin Wariso said four of the victims were 18 years old, while the age of another girl had yet to be ascertained as she was being treated at the Teluk Intan Hospital. She was reported to be in stable condition.

He said preliminary investigations revealed that their Proton Iswara car had skidded before plunging into the canal after the 18-year-old driver lost control of the vehicle.

The case is being investigated under Rule 10 of the Road Traffic Rules 1959 (LN 166/59). - FMT