KUALA LUMPUR: Two Form One students of SM Taman Yarl were believed to have drowned when they fell into a monsoon drain near their school this afternoon.
Three friends, Mohammad Shafiq Akmal Amran, Rafiuddin Fakhrullah Ridzuan and Aidil Azhar Sham Saffiri, were on their way back from school and crossed the monsoon drain around 3pm.
Shafiq and Rafiuddin were then swept away by the strong current while Aidil managed to escape.
Aidil then contacted the school. After police were alerted, a search and rescue (SAR) operation was launched to locate the duo.
Brickfields police chief Assistant Commissioner Roslan Khalid said: "Our initial investigation showed the boys were walking home when they crossed the monsoon drain.
"The SAR is still ongoing with the help of Fire and Rescue Department and Civil Defence Department.
"We will deploy diving team if we can't locate the victims by tonight," he said.
Roslan added that police have yet to record Aidil's statement as he is currently undergoing treatment at the Universiti Malaya Medical Centre.
City Fire and Rescue Department operations room chief Zamani Ismail said the SAR is focussing at an area near PPR Kampung Muhibbah, some 1km from where the students were last seen.
Meanwhile, Rafiuddin's sister Rabiatul Asawiyah Izwan, 19, said it was normal for her brother to use the route when returning from school.
She said three of them, from PPR Kampung Muhibbah, would usually walk home after school.
"Sometimes, they take the bus, but if the bus was delayed, adik will walk home with his friends using that route." she said.