Police have arrested a man suspected of blocking an ambulance that was on its way to an emergency along Jalan Sultan Azlan Shah in Sungai Tiram, in Penang’s Barat Daya district.
Barat Daya district police chief Asst Comm Anuwal Ab Wahab said officers detected a 44-second video on the MRCS Penang TikTok account on Friday (23 Oct) showing a motorcyclist sitting in the ambulance’s path, The Star reported. The clip was filmed on the road itself and spread widely after it was uploaded.
The suspect was picked up the same day, according to Sinar Harian, which quoted the district police chief as saying the man was detained to help investigations.
“Following the viral video, police managed to track down and arrest the man today. The case is being investigated under Section 43(1) of the Road Transport Act 1987 for careless and inconsiderate driving,” Anuwal said in a statement.
Section 43(1) of the Road Transport Act 1987 covers careless and inconsiderate driving. Police have not named the suspect, and no details of his age or where he was picked up have been released. The clip was uploaded to a TikTok account run by the Penang branch of the Malaysian Red Crescent Society.
Anuwal said investigations are ongoing and advised road users to obey traffic rules and give way to emergency vehicles, adding that obstructing an ambulance can hold up life-saving work.
The public was also advised against speculating about the case, as online chatter could interfere with the probe.
Ambulances on a call run with sirens and lights, and road users are expected to open a lane rather than close it. A hold-up of even a minute can matter when a patient is critical and the crew is working against time.
The video drew attention because the obstruction was recorded from start to finish. Clips of emergency vehicles caught in traffic are a regular sight on Penang roads, where narrow stretches and heavy motorcycle volumes leave little room to give way. Riders filtering through stalled traffic often end up in the lane an ambulance needs, and the seconds lost there are the ones crews say they cannot get back.
Under the same Act, a case built on obstruction is handled as a driving offence rather than a public-order matter.
