Sungai Korok has claimed 8 lives since 2021, say cops

 They include the family of six found dead in the river yesterday.

Yesterday, a man, a woman, three children and one infant were found dead in a car pulled from Sungai Korok. (JBPM pic)

PETALING JAYA:

 Sungai Korok near Jitra, Kedah, where six family members were found dead after their car veered off the road and plunged into the river, has claimed a total of eight lives since 2021.

Kubang Pasu police chief Radzi Abdul Rahim said the figure includes casualties from the latest incident yesterday.

“In Dec 2021, a four-year-old boy died after the car he was in skidded and plunged into the river.

“In Dec 2022, a 12-year-old boy was found dead after the car driven by his father veered off and sank into the riverbed.

“However, no accidents were reported in the Sungai Korok area in 2023 and last year,” Bernama reported him as saying.

Radzi said in May this year, a car carrying four university students plunged into the river, but all four victims managed to escape through the right rear window.

“The most heartbreaking incident was yesterday’s tragedy, where six family members died after their car was believed to have veered off the road and plunged into the river,” he said.

Radzi noted that members of the public had suggested that safety barriers be installed along high-risk stretches of the road.

“There is also a need to enhance road safety awareness campaigns, especially for those driving along narrow roads near rivers, to prevent such tragedies from recurring,” he said.

Yesterday morning, six people believed to be from the same family were found dead in a car pulled from Sungai Korok.

Kedah fire and rescue department zone 1 head Ahmad Aminuddin Abd Rahim said the six comprised a man, a woman, three children and one infant.

He said the department received an emergency call about the car in the river at 8.38am, informing them that a Proton Iswara sedan was floating in the river. - FMT