LIGHT PLANE CRASHES, KILLING PILOT AND INJURING SURGEON ON BOARD

KUCHING (Malaysia), Jan 25 (Bernama) -- A light aircraft crashed into jungle
in Sungai Ladong, Simunjan, in Samarahan today, killing the pilot and injuring a
surgeon who was also on board, police said.

Simunjan is a small Sarawakian district/ town located between Serian and Sri
Aman in the island of Borneo. It borders Sebuyau and Samarahan. Sarawak is one
of two Malaysian states on the island of Borneo.

Simunjan police chief DSP Choo Yin Kok identified the pilot as Stanley
Tiong, 61, and the surgeon as Dr Ngu Siu Kong, 58, of the Normah Medical
Specialist Centre here.

He said the police rushed two officers and 18 men to the spot after
villagers called to inform about the crash at 9am and found the plane caught in
the trees.

Dr Ngu was still in the aircraft when the search-and-rescue team got there
but fell to the ground suddenly and sustained injuries, he told Bernama when
contacted.

Choo could not give details of the aircraft route and flight time but
Bernama learnt that the plane was on a flight from Kuching to Sibu when it
crashed.


He said the Royal Malaysia Air Force (RMAF) was also involved in the SAR
operation, with the use of a Nuri helicopter.

Meanwhile, an ambulance of the armed forces medical centre at the Kuching
airbase brought Tiong's body and Dr Ngu to the Sarawak General Hospital at
1.40pm. Family members of Tiong and Dr Ngu were at the hospital.

After treatment at the hospital, Dr Ngu was taken to the Normah Medical
Specialist Centre for further treatment.

He was reported to be in stable condition.

Family members dissuaded reporters from approaching Dr Ngu, saying he should
be allowed to undergo treatment and get some rest.

Meanwhile, a Kampung Sungai Ladong resident, Munir Che, 55, said the pilot
was still alive when he and a group of villagers found him lying on the ground
while Dr Ngu was trapped in a fuselage on top of a tree.

He said the aircraft was flying very low around the village before it
crashed into trees and exploded.

"I heard the explosion at 8.15am and suspected that the plane that I had
seen earlier had crashed," he told Bernama.

Munir said his friend, Tegah Jaapar, 55, alerted Simunjan police about the
crash before he (Munir) and seven other villagers traversed the jungle for one
hour to reach the crash site.

"The smell of fuel and smoke brought us to the wreckage. The plane was
broken into two with the fuselage entangled on top of a tree while several parts
of the engine on the ground.

-- BERNAMA