[quote="thestar.com.my]
Boy choked in ‘jumping’ fish mishapBY EMBUN MAJID
An eight-year-old boy died when a freshwater fish, which he was playing with, got stuck in his throat.
Samion Ahmad was playing with the fish, known as puyu, at his family home in Jalan Masjid, Jitra, Kedah, when the freak incident happened at 1pm yesterday. He had caught the fish several days earlier.
The fish, which was kept in a concrete tank outside the house, suddenly jumped out of the water into his mouth.
His mother Sa-arja Deumali, 45, said Samion was stirring the water with his hand when the incident occurred.
“I was taking my bath when the incident happened.
“My husband had earlier warned our two sons not to leave the house and locked them in but they slipped out through the window to play outside.
“Samion's younger brother, Jaafar, three, who was playing nearby, had earlier told him not to stir the water as the fish might jump out.
“Several minutes later, he heard Samion screaming while holding his throat,” she said when met yesterday.
Sa-arja said a neighbour, who heard the screams, then alerted Samion's father, Ahmad Johari, 44, and they rushed the boy to the Jitra Hospital.
She said Samion's mouth was bleeding and he died on the way to the hospital.
She also said that the doctor removed the fish, which was found lodged in Samion’s throat.
Sa-arja, who said both she and Ahmad were rubber tappers, added that Samion had followed them to work at an estate in Jitra yesterday morning.
The fins of puyu, which can be found in padi fields and irrigation canals, are very sharp. Some Malays keep the fish believing that it can ward off evil spirits.
The body of Samion was buried in the Kampung Hijrah Muslim cemetery at 6pm yesterday.
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