Tearful reunion for TKPS students and guides
About 70 students, teachers and parents were reunited with adventure trainers from Sabah on Wednesday (June 17) at Tanjong Katong Primary School (TKPS).
The guides from Mountain Torq, a company based on Mount Kinabalu in Sabah, Malaysia, were the ones who were leading the TKPS group on a simplified version of the Via Ferrata route when the 5.9-magnitude earthquake struck on June 5.
The tragedy claimed the lives of 10 from Singapore – seven pupils and two teachers from TKPS, and the adventure guide who accompanied them on the trip to Mount Kinabalu.
Two local adventure trainers — Mr Valerian Joannes and Mr Ricky Masirin — also died in the aftermath.
Mr Joannes’ fiancee, Ms Jessica Veronica Sikta, who were among those at the reunion, gave a moving speech.
Other speakers included Mr Jaidip Jhala, father of Sonia Jhala, a TKPS pupil who was a victim of the quake.
Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean and Education Minister Heng Swee Keat were also at the reunion and spent some time talking to students, teachers, parents and representatives from Mountain Torq.
Read the full report in our print edition on June 18.
Subscribe to The New Paper, now available in print and digital, at http://bit.ly/tnpeshop.
Get The New Paper on your phone with the free TNP app. Download from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store now
