14th September 1997

Forgotten victims in a week of tragedies

It was two years ago that 51 year old . D D Mendis got a job as an engineer in a Brunei company. Having earlier worked at the Water Board for 15 years, he had always wanted to go overseas, so that he could provide better for his three teenage children and wife. For several years he had been trying to go abroad and finally when he got the job in Brunei, it seemed a dream come true. The money was good and the family was well off.

Though the family missed him, especially his teenage children, he kept in touch with them by phoning once a week. Ironically the phone calls were always made on Saturdays and it was on Saturday, September 6 that he met with his death.

When the Sunday Times visited his home in Padukka last week, his wife Vinitha Mendis was about to leave for Malaysia to bring her husband's body home. Still in a state of shock and having been hospitalised twice after the tragedy, she was determined to make the trip. Incidentally Mr. Mendis was to come to Sri Lanka on August 30 for a holiday but later postponed the trip for November 17 as he was getting a few extra days, as his contract was to expire that month.

The family still finds it difficult to come to terms with the death since Mr. Mendis had not mentioned this official trip to Malaysia. His young son Nayanjith said that as a practice his father always kept them informed about his overseas travel.

"The last time he spoke to us he never mentioned this trip. So that we found it difficult to believe that he was on this flight to Malaysia in fact we were expecting his usual call on Saturday but when the call came it was from one of his friends."

The family heard the news of the crash on Saturday morning through the media but it never struck them that it was their father who had been killed. A massive search and rescue operation was mounted by emergency teams from the Royal Brunei Armed Forces. Finally the ill fated aircraft was spotted on Sunday morning. However the weather in Mirii, the crash site had been fine and the cause of the crash remained a mystery.

The body of Mr. Mendis was scheduled to be brought to Sri Lanka on Friday. According to officials the body was in a bad condition, with severe head injuries due to the crash impact.

Today the family is forced to live with the happy memories they spent with their father in Brunei when they visited him six months back. This trip was the second time they saw him after he left home. "We were with him for nearly two months. He took us all over the country. He even promised us he would take us on a world trip once he came home. He had got another job but he wanted to come home for a few years especially to be with us and then go back," Nayanjith said.

Among the other victims, was a Malaysian bride to be 29 year old Olenna, who was going home for her wedding that was to have taken place on September 13. Olena who worked in a Brunei firm had originally planned to travel on September 10, but had decided to advance her trip to prepare for her wedding.

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