Sabah Fire Dept: Missing 11‑year‑old girl found drowned in Sungai Bengkoka after search launched for five victims

KOTA KINABALU, September 2 — An 11-year-old girl who went missing in Sungai Bengkoka, Pitas yesterday afternoon has been found drowned this morning. Pitas Fire and Rescue Station chief, Noor Jali Maslah, announced the tragic discovery in a statement today. The victim was located by villagers at 7:36am, approximately one kilometer away from the Fire and Rescue Control Centre (PKB).

Rescue personnel immediately retrieved the girl using a stretcher and transferred her body to the police, according to Noor Jali. The search and rescue operation was initiated following an emergency call received at 5:17pm the previous day, regarding an incident involving five victims in the river. Six volunteers from Pitas BBP, equipped with a National Disaster Management Agency (NADMA) boat, conducted the operation employing the Surface Water Rescue method within a one-kilometer search radius from PKB.

The incident resulted in two girls, aged four and 14, nearly drowning and being taken to the hospital, while an 18-year-old woman and a 14-year-old boy were unharmed.