TWO bodies have been recovered by search-and-rescue personnel at the Batang Kali landslide site, bringing the current number of casualties to 23 victims. 

A Fire and Rescue Department spokesman said the bodies of a boy and a woman were found.

With the latest recoveries, 10 campers are still missing.

Based on the operator’s registration records, there were 94 people at the campsite  before the landslide struck.

So far, the authorities have rescued 54 people, seven with injuries requiring hospital treatment.

Earlier today, Selangor Fire and Rescue Department director Norazam Khamis said the chances of finding more survivors of the Batang Kali landslide were thinning.

Norazam said the search-and-rescue operation is in its second day and he does not rule out the possibility that remaining victims have run out of oxygen after being buried.

“Based on a rough observation, the chances (of survival) are very slim.

“But if they are stuck in between trees and rocks where there are openings, they might be able to breathe,” he told a press conference at the site today.

The authorities resumed the search around 7.30am with rescue workers in three zones – sector A (hill view), sector B (farm view), and sector C (riverside). 

Norazam said the search-and-rescue operation is now focused on sectors B and C. 

He said the last victim was found yesterday between the two areas. – December 17, 2022.