Ahmad Nasal Abd Rahman, 52, a teacher from Kodiang, Kedah, who is now recovering from his injuries at the Kemaman hospital in Terengganu, was seen in tears and kept saying sorry repeatedly, The Star reported.
The accident, which had occurred at the Chukai toll plaza exit at about 5.30pm on Saturday, resulted in the death’s of Nasal’s wife Mahani Ngah, 42, his daughter Quratul Nisa, 11, and his son Ahmad Nijat, nine. The others killed were Nasal’s older brother Ahmad Razi, 63, sister-in-law Pauziyah Awang, 56, and their granddaughter, Sofea Adriana Shahruddin, seven.
Three of his children are still being treated for the serious injuries they sustained in the accident. They are Ahmad Shakir, 12, Ahmad Mukriz, three, and Quratul Ain, 14.
“I met Ahmad Nasal to ask him if he wanted to see the remains of his wife and children before they were buried yesterday morning.
“He just kept on crying and said I am sorry, I am sorry and said he could not bring himself to see his dead family members,” Mohd Aziruddin Majid (Mahani’s brother-in-law) told the daily yesterday.
Nasal’s father-in-law, Ngah Omar, 73, was also in total shock over the loss of his daughter and two of his grandchildren.
“My entire world collapsed upon hearing the news. But what can we do if this is what fate has determined.
“One Sunday night, as I sat to watch the news, we were informed about an accident which killed six people. I told my wife that such tragedy should not happen to any family, including ours.
“It did not cross my mind at all that the accident actually involved my daughter, grandchildren and other family members. It was about 15 minutes later when a relative came over to our house to inform us about what had happened” he was quoted as saying by The Star, from his home in Kampung Durian Guling in Marang.
The family were on a holiday outing which had included a wedding reception in Felda Jengka, Pahang when the Hyundai Starex MPV they were in, skidded and crashed at KM288.6 of the Lebuhraya Pantai Timur 2 (LPT2).
They were on their way to visit Nasal’s nephew who is studying at Universiti Malaysia Terengganu after leaving the wedding reception when the accident occurred.
According to police, the vehicle’s front left tyre suddenly burst, causing the MPV to skid into the road divider before hitting a pillar of an overhead bridge.