{
  "id": 6420366,
  "title": "Police confirm identities of Sarawak chopper crash victims",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/09/police-confirm-identities-of-sarawak-chopper-crash-victims-6420366",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-09T12:09:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Malaysia Today",
    "slug": "free-malaysia-today-freemalays",
    "url": "https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2026/09/09/police-confirm-identities-of-sarawak-chopper-crash-victims"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Police in Sarawak have identified all five victims of the Flying Doctor Service helicopter crash that occurred at Long Lellang on yesterday. The victims, whose remains were taken to Miri Hospital for post-mortem examinations and formal identification, are pilot Zainol Afiq Bee Sham, medical officer Dr Ainul Baraah Kamaruddin, medical assistant Alexson Adit Henry, and nurses Debra Moset and Jessie Paya Jok. The identification was based on personal belongings, clothing, and seating positions inside the helicopter, as stated by Sarawak police commissioner Zainal Abdullah. The preliminary investigation revealed that several witnesses saw smoke and flames coming from the helicopter before the crash. Villagers assisted in putting out the fire using available fire extinguishers at the short takeoff and landing airport, but the victims were unable to escape. The helicopter, built in 1991, had not undergone maintenance since August 24 and was cleared for 100 more flight hours. Police have opened a sudden death report and the Air Accident Investigation Bureau is conducting the crash investigation. Notably, the helicopter lacked a cockpit voice recorder or black box, and there was no evidence indicating that the pilot made an emergency call before the crash.",
  "summary": "They were identified based on personal belongings found with their remains, clothing, and seating positions.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Free Malaysia Today",
        "title": "Police confirm identities of Sarawak chopper crash victims",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/09/police-confirm-identities-of-sarawak-chopper-crash-victims",
        "published": "2026-09-09T12:09:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}