A man had a narrow miss with death when a cement statue on display at the Sungai Lembing tunnel, a former tin mine which has been developed into a tourist destination in Pahang, collapsed and fell on him.

The incident occurred about 3pm two days when businessman Chai Coon Chok, 52, from Kulai, Johor, his wife, Peh Beng Teng, 43, and 22 others were visiting the place.

Chai, who was injured on the hip and admitted to the Kuantan Specialist Hospital for treatment, said the statue just collapsed and fell on him.

“We were admiring the view in the tunnel after boarding a train there when suddenly the statue collapsed and hit me and I fell to the ground,” he said when met by reporters today.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson at the Kuantan Municipal Council (MPK), when contacted, said the tunnel had been closed temporarily following the incident.

He said notices had been up at the tunnel to warn visitors against touching or sitting on any objects in the tunnel.

Sungai Lembing was once a tin mining town. During its heydays, Sungai Lembing has one of the largest and deepest tin mine tunnel and also known as the El Dorado of the East.

- Bernama