GOMBAK – The remains of Royal Malaysian Navy pilot Lt Cdr Wan Rezaudeen Kamal Zainal Abidin, 37, were buried at the Raudhatul Sakinah Muslim Cemetery tonight.
The burial ceremony was carried out according to navy tradition, which saw Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin hand the naval ensign to Wan Rezaudeen Kamal’s wife, Alia Amalina Md Noor.
Earlier tonight, his body was brought to the Salahuddin al-Ayyubi Mosque at Taman Melati here for funeral prayers.
Hundreds of people had gathered at the mosque including the victim’s family, friends, some navy officers, media personnel and some members of the public.
A cousin, Siti Arbaiyah Bahaudin, told Scoop she was worried for Wan Rezaudeen Kamal’s parents as he was their only son.
Her late cousin also has a 3-year-old son, she added.
Wan Rezaudeen Kamal was among the 10 navy personnel killed in the tragedy involving two navy helicopters in Lumut, Perak yesterday.
He was on board the HOM M503-3 and was part of the four-member crew that also comprised Muhammad Firdaus Ramli, Mohammad Amirulfaris Mohamad Marzukhi and Muhammad Faisol Tamadun, all of whom perished.
The passengers on board the same helicopter were Noorfarahimi Mohd Saedy, Nor Rahiza Anuar and Joanna Felicia Rohna.
The other helicopter, a Fennec M502-6, which carried three other navy personnel, also had no survivors.
The two helicopters collided while rehearsing a fly-past for the navy’s 90th anniversary, an event scheduled early next month but which has since been cancelled.
The HOM helicopter crashed in the Navy Stadium, while the Fennec crashed near the pool of the Navy Sports Complex. – April 24, 2024