Othman’s photo from the roof of the hotel.
SIBU: The inferno that levelled about 60 houses in Kampung Datu and left 500 people homeless exactly seven years ago today is still fresh in the minds of the media practitioners who covered the incident.
The Borneo Post reporter Othman Ishak said it was shocking to have witnessed the disaster and to realise that so many people had lost their homes in the blink of an eye was just heart-wrenching.
Othman showing the photo he took of the incident.
He recalled that to take photos of the fire, he had to climb up the roof of a hotel for the best shots.
“I was at the office and wanted to go home. It was around 3 or 4pm, I received a call from my chief (reporter) that there was a fire at Kampung Datu.
“I rushed to the scene and found that the place was congested with people. Without wasting time, I decided to climb up the nearby hotel’s roof after getting permission from the hotel.
“Immediately upon reaching the hotel roof, I whipped out my camera and captured the tragic moment where the villagers were engulfed in flames. The 40 minutes on that roof top will become an experience I will never forget in my career,” Othman said.
He said it was a sombre sight to see victims racing against time to save family members and property.
“I had a vantage point from the top witnessing the chaotic situation. Victims were running from left to right to salvage what they can,” he added.
“The road was packed with people who also went all out to assist the victims to salvage their belongings.”
Michael Remy Henry
Utusan Borneo reporter, Michael Remy Henry recalled seeing thick smoke while on the way to fetch his wife from work and making a detour to head straight for the scene.
“Firemen were already at the scene and used all resources and strategies available to prevent the fire from spreading to other houses.
“Police meanwhile, helped to control the situation as there were many people at the time of incident,” he recounted.
According to Michael, his most unforgettable moment was seeing villagers including outsiders helping to rescue loved ones and move belongings out of houses before they were gutted.
“There were those who piggybacked senior citizens and even, went all out to save pets – cats.”
Two people are seen saving a mattress as a firefighter prepares his hose to fight the blaze.
For See Hua Daily News reporter, Chia Shu Kiong, it was the first time he witnessed such a massive village fire.
Chia said as the fire ravaged the village, dark clouds filled the air and ash fell like ‘black snow’.
He managed to record the action of villagers trying to save their belongings amidst the raging fire.
He added that his photograph earned him the Kenyalang Journalism Award (KJA) 2014 for the photography category.