IPOH: The search and rescue operation for landslide victims in Simpang Pulai will continue through the night until all of them are found.
Perak police chief Datuk Mior Faridalthrash Wahid said, so far, police have confirmed that a lorry driver was buried alive.
He said the victim has been identified as Muhammad Hafiz Hamdi, 31, from Tanjung Piandang in Kerian.
"The victim is still buried under the rubble and it is hard for the rescue team to retrieve the body due to mounts of soil.
"We found his body about 8pm and have also informed his family members," he said in a press conference at the scene here today.
Mior Faridalathrash said that as of 9pm, police confirmed that there were only two vehicles involved in the 1.30pm incident.
"We found a Toyota Vellfire turned turtle behind the lorry but we are not sure how many people were in the vehicle," he said.
The landslide is believed to have occurred about 1.30pm following heavy rain, which loosened the soil.
Debris from the landslide covered a 100m stretch and blanketed both sides of the road, rendering it impassable for vehicles at the moment.
Perak Infrastructure, Energy, Water and Public Transport Committee chairman Datuk Mohd Zolkafly Harun said the Public Works Department (PWD) was monitoring the situation.