Heavy metals found in Kelantan Orang Asli blood, community fear poisoned by mining
S Vinothaa
| Dec 10, 2024
Blood tests on the Temiar community reveal higher than normal levels of chromium. Iron ore mining that turned the rivers red may be the reason.
This series was supported by the Pulitzer Center.
Angah Alang, 76, was an adept swimmer and skilled tribesperson, but on July 23, 2015, he died in just three feet of water.
His body was found trapped among logs and shrubbery which rampaged down the river in a flash flood, along with boulders and mountain debris, some 10km downstream from an iron ore mine uphill.
The Orang Asli patriarch’s death in the river he had fished, swam, and bathed in almost all his life, was a terrible shock to the quiet, remote Temiar community of Kampung Kelaik near Gua Musang, who to this day are grief-stricken by the loss.
What it took to produce this story
To produce this series, Malaysiakini journalist S Vinothaa, photojournalist Azneal Ishak, and KiniTV multimedia journalist Khoo Shiyuan made multiple five-hour journeys from Kuala Lumpur to Kampung Kelaik from February to November 2024, via bumpy rides along logging trails.
The reporting included interviewing the affected community, hiking up to the mines, consulting with scientists and medical professionals, conducting independent water, blood, fish, and fern sampling and testing, and researching the iron ore mining supply chain from the hinterlands of Kelantan to the world.
Each trip to Kampung Kelaik costs at least RM1,000 - not including the costs of guides, laboratory testing, and medical checks.
Some of the cost of reporting was supported by grants, but the salaries of the reporting team, translators, editors, a web developer, and a graphic designer were paid for by Malaysiakini.
Your support can help us do more impactful reporting just like this.
If you believe we should do more, do consider donating to the Kini News Lab. You can also show your support to the Kampung Kelaik villagers and hear their stories first-hand at an event on Dec 14, 2024.
