Hikers rescue woman in trouble on ‘Rocket Trail’
GEORGE TOWN: Quick action by a group of some 20 hikers may have saved the life of a woman who fainted while hiking up a steep trail near Bukit Cendana here.
The hikers, who were at a nearby rest station, rushed up the hill on Sunday with a stretcher and brought down the woman via a narrow trail.
Poh Hai Khing, 45, a mother of six children, is recovering at the Penang Hospital and her condition is reported to be stable.
She was with two other female hikers on a tough trail referred to as the “Rocket Trail” – an uphill trail that leads to the ruins of a bungalow at the hilltop.
Yam Kooi Chuan, 54, who was among those who lent a helping hand, said the woman was semiconscious when they found her.
“We gave her glucose powder since she could hardly talk. She complained of pain in her abdomen and kept vomiting,” he said.
Recounting the incident, Yam said a hiker came down to the Level Five rest station at about 6pm to alert others that a woman had fainted and needed help.
Yam said he and his friends Yeoh Soo Guan, Jane Yong Fong Har, Tan Eng Chye and Chan Kar Hong were the first to reach the scene.
“Since she was drifting into deep sleep, we kept massaging her facial pressure points while she was being carried down to keep her awake. We learnt that from a Chinese sifu,” said Yam.
Several other hikers also rushed up from the rest station after an SOS was posted on the Happy Hikers’ WhatsApp group.
The men then took turns to carry Poh down on a stretcher through the 2,000-odd steps to Moon Gate, which is the starting point for hikers near the Penang Botanic Gardens.
Along the way, a team of firemen from the Bagan Jermal Fire and Rescue Department and paramedics from the hospital provided treatment as Poh was unconscious.
Poh’s husband, who declined to be named, thanked those who had helped his wife.
“I reckon my wife took a long route and she walked too fast without sufficient rest,” he said, adding that Poh’s condition had improved.