KOTA KINABALU: Families of those killed in the deadly earthquake here last month are planning to visit Mount Kinabalu, the site of the 18 deaths, to pay tribute to the victims.
Parents of 12-year-old Singaporean Sonia Jhala, one of the children who perished during the quake, are also planning a one-year anniversary visit to the mountain in her memory.
“It’s to finish what she could not finish, to honour her,” said the 48-year-old Jaidipsinh Jhala who is coming to terms with her death.
“Some of the mothers said they might just go to the base, the fathers can climb. We can probably leave flowers, maybe at the site, perhaps even say prayers,” said Karen in a Singapore Straits Times report.
On June 5, a 5.9-magnitude quake struck the state some 19km from the town of Ranau near Kinabalu Park at 7.15am where Sonia and six of her friends from Tanjong Katong Primary School (TKPS) in Singapore were on the mountain’s Via Ferrata obstacle route.
Sonia was the youngest of three siblings and was in the third day of a leadership programme when the disaster struck.
Rockfall from the quake killed some 18 people including 10 from the school’s entourage.
Twenty-two pupils, six teachers and two Singapore guides who were also on the school expedition survived.
All the student survivors except for Prajesh Dhimant Patel, who is still hospitalised but recovering from his injuries, went back to class on the first day of the new school term on June 29.
Tristan Wing, one of the survivors and his father Alec, said that despite Tristan’s flashbacks of the incident, they will attempt the ascend again.
Others like James Ho, father of Rachel Ho said that while some parents were making plans, he was not sure whether he would.
“We just want to let the families settle, get by the first few weeks first, and when life goes back to normal, then we can make concrete plans.”
Others, like Jayden Francis, who suffered injuries and is still limping on crutches are still too traumatised to return.
“I may get over this, maybe in 10 years’ time. Now, even for a million dollars, I’m not going back,” he said.
The report recounts survivor tales and how the guides had tried to save the children by shielding them from rockfall and getting them to safety in the aftermath of the 30 second quake.
The earthquake and the 100 aftershocks have left at least RM95 million in damages to public infrastructure like schools and roads.
The Malaysian and state government also presented victims with a goodwill donation of RM10,000 to the next of kin of victims and RM2,000 to those affected.