KUALA LUMPUR: The victim of the fatal incident where an uprooted tree fell on several cars and the monorail track along Jalan Sultan Ismail here yesterday, was a driver who was on his way to pick up his employer's guests.
The victim's younger brother, Shahrizal Atan, 38, said just before the incident, his brother Md Rizal Atan's employers had contacted him because he was assigned to pick up some guests at the hotel, he said when met at Hospital Kuala Lumpur today.
In the incident which occured around 2.19pm yesterday, one man was killed and another injured when a large tree was uprooted and fell onto a busy road and the monotrail track above, damaging 17 vehicles.
Shahrizal said that he found out about the incident after he was contacted by the victim's son, who told him that he could not contact his father and that the police were looking for his father's family in Manjung, Perak.
"A neighbor told my nephew that the police had came to look for his father's family in Manjung because my brother's address in his identity card is listed in Manjung.
"I told him to calm down, because the matter was not confirmed at the time," he said.
After he received confirmation, Shahrizal brought the victim's family from their home in Taman Medan, Petaling Jaya to HKL.
"When we heard what happened, I didn't have an inkling that the victim was my brother, it just so happened at the time I was at another brother's house to visit my father who had just been discharged from the hospital due to a heart attack.
"I told my father that nothing had been confirmed My father said 'go and see first, tell me anything, I will accept it'.
Shahrizan said the last time he saw his brother was last Friday during a Hari Raya gathering and thanksgiving prayers for their father.
He said his brother was a good person and cared about his other siblings, and the relationship between the siblings was close.
Shahrizal hoped that the condition of old and matured trees in busy locations would be given serious attention by the authorities.
"The trees should be maintained, instead of waiting for things to happen before taking action because this involves lives. I lost my brother in the blink of an eye," he said, adding that for now the family has not thought of taking any further action because they were still in shock.
"At the moment, we are not sure (whether we will take action), this will depend on the family members,".
The family has lodged a police report on the matter.
Md Rizal's remains will be buried at the Section 21 Cemetery in Shah Alam today (May 8).