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Dec 7, 2009

Freak car mishap kills 2



The victims: A combo picture of Siti Nuramira (left) and Siti Nurdiana who were killed on Sunday.




KOTA BARU - TWO shoppers were killed on Sunday after a runaway car in an open air parking lot of a mall smashed through a retaining wall before plunging down three stories onto an escalator. Another shopper was seriously injured in the freak accident that occurred at 4.45pm when the mall in Jalan Hamzah was packed with weekend patrons. Nurain Said, who was driving the car when it plunged, miraculously survived the 54m fall. The dead have been identified as trainee nurses Siti Nuramira Shamsuddin, 19, and Siti Nurdiana Azman, 18, from a local college. Both died on the spot after being hit by falling debris. District OCPD Asst Comm Zahruddin Abdullah said the first driver of the car - identified only as Sabri - had earlier got out of the vehicle, which had stalled at the parking lot. He said Sabri then told his 17-year-old sister Nurain to get behind the wheel while he pushed the car in an attempt to jumpstart the engine. While Sabri was pushing the car, the engine suddenly started, causing the car to lunge forward and smash into the retaining wall, which also served as the building's ventilation airway. 'We are looking for Sabri and another woman identified as Nurul Atikah to help in the investigations,' ACP Zahruddin added. A witness, Hazura Ariffin, 25, said she heard a loud bang that shook the building. 'I thought it was an earthquake. I was shocked to see the wrecked car lying in the middle of the mall between the escalators,' she said. -- THE STAR