Wildlife camera footage shows missing hiker on trail

 Perak fire and rescue department director says data cards from two surveillance cameras were retrieved today.

Missing hiker Jaslinda Saludin was last seen on a wildlife camera on May 24. The search for the hiker, involving 50 personnel, entered its sixth day today.

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Footage from wildlife surveillance cameras has shown that missing hiker Jaslinda Saludin, 49, was last seen heading towards the Sukaneka camp on Gunung Batu Putih, near Tapah, on May 24.

Perak fire and rescue department director Sayani Saidon said data cards from two surveillance cameras at the mountain peak were retrieved at 10.15am today. “There is a recording showing the victim (Jaslinda) crossing Camera 1 at 11.22am on May 24,” she said.

“There is also footage of eight members of the rescue team and one forestry mountain guide crossing Camera 1 at 5.15pm on May 25. There is no footage of the victim turning back and crossing Camera 1 again,” Sayani said.

Yesterday, a member of the Perak Forestry Mountain Guide team reported that Jaslinda had left a message scrawled on the ground, asking him to take a photograph to show that she had reached the summit. “Yes, she (Jaslinda) reached the summit, but she did not leave any hint as to where she went or which trail she took. She only informed us that she had reached the top,” the guide, named Hafiz, told Bernama.

Sayani said the wildlife camera footage supports the belief that Jaslinda had followed the route to the Sukaneka Camp, as evidenced by the discovery of shoe prints and a water bottle since the beginning of the search.

The search has entered its sixth day, with about 50 personnel involved, with eight more deployed to the mountain summit this morning. The fire and rescue department said there are no plans at this stage to suspend the mission.

Sayani reported that a drone unit officer, Safwan Abd Hali, sustained injuries to his thigh, knee, and ankle during a search yesterday. He was extracted by helicopter together with three other rescuers who stopped the search at Puncak 2085.

Jaslinda was last seen on May 24 after starting on the Trans Spencer Chapman trek at 2am on May 23, along with 13 other hikers and two mountain guides via the Pos Gedung-Gunung Bah Gading-Gunung Batu Putih-Kuala Woh route. - FMT