KUANTAN: Two individuals including a child are believed to have drowned after being swept away by strong currents while wading in a flooded football field near the Umno building in Mentakab near here on Tuesday (Dec 21).

       Pahang Fire and Rescue Dept (Operations) assistant director Ismail Abdul Ghani said the department received information on the incident at 3.15pm before sending six firemen from the Mentakab station to the location.

       "A police statement by a witness claimed that a man and a child were wading in the water in the area before being swept away by the current and disappearing. Their identities are still unknown.

       "A search and rescue operation for the victims was carried out by boat on Tuesday over a 500sq m radius,” he said in a statement on Wednesday (Dec 22).

       Ismail said the operation was halted at 5.15pm Tuesday and resumed on Wednesday morning.

       The SAR operation for Mohd Firdaus Supiardi, 26, reported missing at Sungai Belat, Kuantan on Saturday (Dec 18), was still ongoing and included a 10ha oil palm plantation. – Bernama