PADANG TERAP: The body of a teenager with learning disabilities, feared drowned alongside his mother, was discovered today in floodwaters at Kampung Tanjung Kiri.
Nineteen-year-old Muhammad Rosman Rohaidi's remains were found at 5.25pm in a palm oil plantation, about 150 metres from the spot where they were last seen, following a 10-hour search and rescue operation.
Rosman and his mother, Salmah Mohd Zain, 46, were swept away by powerful flash flood currents earlier in the day.
Kedah Fire and Rescue Department Zone 1 chief Ahmad Aminudin Abd Rahim said that the search for Salmah was still ongoing.
"The victim's body was found entangled in palm fronds, about 150 metres from where they were last seen, submerged under the floodwaters. We will resume the search and rescue operation at 6pm to locate his mother," he told reporters at the scene after Rosman's body was recovered.
The body has been sent to Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital for a post-mortem examination.
Meanwhile, district police chief Deputy Superintendent Mulkiaman Manzar said Rosman's body was discovered shortly after authorities found slippers, believed to belong to the victims, around six metres from where the body was recovered, at 3pm.
"The receding water levels allowed the search to continue, leading to the discovery of the teenager's body. The operation will continue until 7pm today in hopes of finding the mother," he said.
Earlier, it was reported that the pair were feared drowned after being swept away by floodwaters in Kampung Tanjung Kiri.