A promise that cannot be kept: Grief and gratitude pour in for Sarawak’s fallen medics

MIRI, Sept 11 — “This story may soon be forgotten by others, bit by bit, but I will never forget you, not even for a second.”

Those were the anguished words posted on Threads by izzatisyamimi, wife of pilot Captain Zainol Afiq Bee Sham, 30, who was among five people killed when a Flying Doctor Service (FDS) helicopter crashed near Long Lellang, Ulu Baram, on Sept 8.

Captain Zainol Afiq Bee Sham, 30; medical officer Dr Ainul Baraah Kamaruddin, 33; assistant medical officer Alexson Adit Henry, 31; and staff nurses Debra Moset, 40, and Jessie Paya Jok, 44.

Posting under the handle izzatisyamimi shortly after midnight on Sept 10, just hours after her husband’s DNA sample was sent for testing and a day after his body was recovered, the widow poured out her grief in a message that has since been widely shared on social media.

“People see me as strong on the outside, but inside I am completely shattered,” she wrote. “You always said I was a supermom, you always said I was a strong woman, but who am I without you by my side? You taught me to be strong, but it isn’t fair of you to leave me like this. I did tell you to fly high, but this time you flew too high — so high that I can no longer catch up with you. Love you always.”

A day earlier, as the bodies of the victims were being recovered from the crash site, the same account had posted another message addressed directly to her late husband, describing the couple’s children crying inconsolably through the night.

“Your children really aren’t giving me any chance to cry at all, are they? Please help settle them for a while, daddy — my pool of tears is already full. It’s my turn now. Tonight both of them were wailing. Just be patient, it’s my turn now. I hope you’re strong enough to watch me cry my heart out. We love you daddy,” she wrote.

The others who died in their FDS mission to serve the rural people of Sarawak were medical officer Dr Ainul Baraah Kamaruddin, 33; assistant medical officer Alexson Adit Henry, 31; and staff nurses Debra Moset, 40, and Jessie Paya Jok, 44.

The tragedy has also prompted an outpouring of recollections from villagers, former colleagues, friends and family members of the crew, many of whom took to social media to share memories of the FDS team’s outreach trips across Kapit, Limbang and Miri divisions.

Among the widely circulated tributes was a video and photo montage sourced from TikTok user Fikri Jalil, showing the FDS team during a visit to Kampung Balai in Ulu Baram.

Among the images were a doctor attending to a patient on the steps of a longhouse, villagers chatting warmly with the pilot during a stopover, and locals helping the crew load medical supplies and equipment back onto the aircraft.

The accompanying caption recalled the crew’s parting words to the villagers: “We’ll come again in November, okay?”

“These, it turned out, were the last words spoken before they left Kampung Balai, Ulu Baram,” the post read. “That promise, now impossible to keep, has become a heart-wrenching memory for villagers still grieving over this tragedy. Their service and sacrifice to the villagers will never be forgotten. Al-Fatihah.”

Among the five victims was paramedic the late Jessie Paya Jok, 44, who according to a close friend had been just months away from beginning a new chapter in her life.

Her friend of nearly two decades, Caroline Sawai Joseph Chungat, said Paya had excitedly shared that this month was to be her last serving with the FDS. She had planned to pursue an Advanced Diploma in Midwifery thereafter.

“Next year I want to continue my studies…” was how Paya had put it to those close to her, Chungat recalled — an ambition that never came to pass.

Chungat, who had known Paya since 2005, described her as a soft-spoken woman of few words who nonetheless brightened the lives of those around her with her smile. During her service at the Bario Health Clinic, Paya was remembered fondly by residents of the interior, including for reportedly using her own money at times to help cover the travel fares of patients who needed treatment at Miri Hospital.

“Not everyone’s good deeds are spoken of while they are still alive. Sometimes, it is only after they are gone that we truly realise the extent of the kindness they showed,” Chungat’s tribute read, adding that although Paya’s dream went unfulfilled, her service and kindness would continue to be remembered by those whose lives she touched.

“Al-Fatihah for the late Jessie Paya Jok. May all her sacrifices become deeds that continue to bring reward,” the tribute concluded.

The helicopter, which was ferrying an FDS medical team, went down near Long Lellang in Ulu Baram on Sept 8, killing all five people on board. Recovery operations for the victims’ remains were carried out over the following days, with DNA samples taken to confirm their identities.

The FDS provides outreach medical and health services to remote interior communities across Sarawak, with teams regularly flown by helicopter to longhouses and villages inaccessible by road. — The Borneo Post