The late Zainol Afiq spoke for an hour with his mother a day before the tragedy

SEREMBAN: The father of Captain Zainol Afiq Bee Sham, 31, who was killed in the ‘flying doctor’ helicopter crash near the Long Lellang Ulu Baram landing strip in Sarawak yesterday evening, admitted that he is still in shock over the tragedy that claimed his son’s life.

Bee Sham Ahmad, 59, who lives in Senawang, said that he initially thought the incident did not involve any loss of life.

He was informed of the accident by one of his children and initially thought it was just a regular crash that did not involve any fatalities.

Feeling uneasy, Bee Sham said he then called a friend of Zainol Afiq who worked with his son in Miri, before receiving confirmation of the incident.

“I still cannot accept the news. He was too young. I still can’t believe he has left us,” he said, choking back tears.

Yesterday, the helicopter known as the ‘flying doctor’, registered as BO-105, carrying four passengers including a pilot, was reported to have crashed near the landing strip at Long Lellang in Sarawak.

Besides Zainol Afiq, those killed were medical officer Dr. Ainul Baraah Kamaruddin, 32; assistant medical officer, Alexson Adit; and two nurses, Debra Moset and Jessie Paya.

Bee Sham said that a day before the incident, his son managed to call and chat with his mother for nearly an hour.

“As usual, he would talk to us via phone calls. He spoke as usual, and it has become routine for him to fly the helicopter whenever there was a call. It had been his ambition to become a pilot since school, and at the age of 21, he was already working,” he said.

Bee Sham also described the late Zainol Afiq, who was the fourth of 12 siblings, as a good, cheerful, and responsible child.

He said that the last time he and his wife met the deceased was during the Negeri Sembilan state election last month, when he returned home to vote.

He, along with his wife, three children, and Zainol Afiq’s in-laws (his wife’s parents), will be heading to Miri, Sarawak today and hope that all matters related to the management of the victim will go smoothly.

“I understand that the body is still at the scene. We hope to bring his remains home to be buried in Negeri Sembilan,” he said.

He also informed that upon arrival in Miri, Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) samples will be taken for the purpose of body identification.

Berita Harian