A 19-year-old teenager was killed in a car crash on the Duke Highway near Setiawangsa on Thursday, 11th April 2024 morning.

In the 2.15 a.m. incident, his friend, who was also in the BMW car, suffered serious injuries.

The deceased has been identified as George Rahul Ariyanayakam, who was driving with a female companion and is thought to have lost control of the vehicle before it crashed and caught fire.

It is understood that pedestrians who witnessed the occurrence alerted the fire and rescue service before removing both injured victims from the burning wreckage.

A City Fire and Rescue spokesman said they got an emergency call at 2.19 a.m. before sending a team of five Setapak firefighters to the location.

"When the team led by commander officer Mohd Anuar Bin Ali arrived at the scene, the car was totally burnt and one of the victims, an adult male had been pronounced dead by the medical first aiders who arrived at the scene, while his friend was rushed to the hospital in an ambulance," the official added.

He stated the cause of the fire is still being investigated.

Meanwhile, in a social media post, Datuk Redzuawan Ismail, also known as Chef Wan, stated that the deceased was the son of his business partners and was like a son to him.

He added that he was devastated by the news and had raced back to KL from abroad when he heard it.

He stated that around 11 a.m., he received a text from his business partner Datuk Jasmine informing him that her eldest son George had died and that they were hurrying to the hospital to identify his body.

"I can't imagine how devastated his parents are right now," he posted on Instagram.

Chef Wan explained that Jasmine and her husband, Datuk Seri Leo, were his business partners in their online retail enterprise, Chef Wan Lifestyle.

"I was supposed to leave tomorrow and instantly took the first flight I could get on. He just finished his 0 levels...," he stated, adding that his mother constantly told him that he was the youth's source of inspiration and that he would care for him as a godfather when they were no longer alive.

Chef Wan claimed he could scarcely fight back tears on his journey to the airport.

"I feel their loss and pain. "May his soul rest in peace, and we pray that his girlfriend recovers from this tragic accident," he said.

He further added that the accident occurred when one of the victims' car tyres blew out when they were driving home on the Duke Highway.

Source: New Straits Times & BFM