Car Carried By West Sumatra's Palo River Current, Driver Found Dead

BPBD evacuated the bodies of residents who were dragged by the river current in Nagari Adat Salareh Aia, Palembayan District, Agam Regency, West Sumatra (ANTARA)

LUBUK BASUNG - A resident who was reported to have been swept away by the current after the car driven fell into the Palo River in Jorong Nggun, Nagari Adat Salareh Aia, Palembayan District, Agam Regency, West Sumatra Province, was found dead on Monday. According to the Head of Emergency and Logistics Division of the Agam Regency Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) Ikhwan Pranata Danda, the body of a resident of Jorong Kayu Pasak in Nagari Salareh Aia named Dayat (26) was found on Monday evening ahead of the Magrib prayer time. "The victim was found in Muaro Kandang, Nagari Salareh Aia Barat, with a distance of about seven kilometers from where the car he was driving into the river," said Ikhwan quoted by ANTARA, Tuesday, August 15. According to him, the body of the pickup driver Mitsubishi L300 who fell into the river was then evacuated to a funeral home in Jorong Kayu Pasak, Nagari Salareh Aia. A pickup car passenger driven by Dayat was also found dead after being dragged by the river current. Ikhwan said that the body of a passenger named Yola (22) was found about three kilometers from the location of the pickup he was caught in. The pickup car driven by Dayat and driven by Yola was reported to have fallen into the river on Monday at around 09.00 WIB. After receiving a report regarding the accident, the Nagari Salareh Aia government forwarded it to the sub-district government and BPBD Agam.

BPBD then dispatched members of the task force to the scene to look for accident victims. BPBD officers found the unlucky pickup, but did not find the driver and passenger in the car. "When the team approached the car, two victims were not found, so the team searched for the whereabouts of the two victims," said Ikhwan.