Machinist dies after crashing into fallen skylift

 

GEORGE TOWN: Electrician Najib Khan Ismail Khan had planned for a holiday in Medan, Indonesia, with his family in April.

But life dealt him a severe blow when his wife Che Fatimah Ishak, 50, was killed after she crashed her motorcycle into the boom of a skylift in Jalan Masjid Negeri here.

Che Fatimah, a machinist, was on her way to work in Bayan Lepas when the accident happened at 6.25am yesterday.

Apparently, the skylift had earlier sent two workers up to the top of a street light for maintenance work before it went off balance and came crashing down at about 3.30am. Both of them were injured.

The boom measuring 25m spanned across both sides of the road, causing a massive jam which lasted nearly five hours before traffic flow returned to normal at 11am.

The police were notified to manage the traffic at about 3.40am before the accident happened three hours later.

“We were looking forward to the trip,” said Najib Khan, 42, adding that their only son Mohd Shahmeor Khan, 16, was excited about it, too.

“But it would not happen now,” he said.

George Town OCPD Asst Comm Gan Kong Meng said it was still dark when the accident happened.

“We have referred the case to the Penang Municipal Council (MPPP) and the Occupational Safety and Health Department,” he said.

MPPP engineering department deputy director A. Rajendran said the contractor was commissioned by the council to do maintenance works on the street lamps along the road.

“Police personnel and the contractor were there to help man the traffic but unfortunately the motorcyclist crashed into the boom.

“The skylift did not topple and fall on the motorcyclist. It was an unfortunate incident,” he said, adding that the council had also lodged a police report.