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NST Online 7th December 2008
YOU don’t mess with nature. And those who mess with nature don’t usually pay. Instead, as in yesterday’s tragedy at the Bukit Antarabangsa area, the homeowners and their families pay for it, some with their lives.
It was just like the infamous Highland Towers apartment block collapse in December 1993, just 1.5km from yesterday’s tragedy, where 48 people lost their lives. The lessons of Highland Towers obviously were not learnt, despite the passionate promises of politicians and developers, and the homeowners seem oblivious to the dangers or choose to ignore them. House owners and would-be home owners should be aware by now that they have to take responsibility for themselves, do their own research before they buy a house and invest in an insurance.
The Bukit Antarabangsa tragedy yesterday was just waiting to happen. Warnings were issued, first by the experts assembled by the Public Works Department who, ironically, zeroed in on 45 residential areas in Ampang. Their findings were presented at last month’s International Conference on Slopes 2008 in Kuala Lumpur. Their study of the slopes in Ulu Klang found over a hundred landslide scars, with most left unattended and having the potential of becoming fatal slope failures. They also found that slopes in this area had been stabilised with ground anchors that were not maintained, and identified regular maintenance and repair works as a critical issue in Ampang area.
Perhaps it is a case of the government machinery grinding slowly to act. Nature served another warning last Sunday when two sisters in Gombak were killed when the family bungalow was hit by a landslide. Just on Thursday a landslide swept past a retaining wall of a car park in Kuala Lumpur.
Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak yesterday announced that all hillside development must stop. It must be noted that similar announcements had been made by politicians, and the Selangor government, for instance, has regulations against developing slopes with a gradient of 25 degrees or more. But at the end of the day, approval comes from the local council, which may not have the manpower or the expertise. The Ampang local council, for instance, has only one engineer who can evaluate building plans, while Selayang, another area with slopes, has none.
The Public Works Department’s slope engineering division, set up after the Damansara rockfall, knows all about slope maintenance, landslide risks and methods to reduce them. Give them the political backing and the money to fast track all the repairs and maintenance that they need to do now, not in the next Malaysia Plan. Now, before more people die.
http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Sunday/Columns/2422021/Article/index_html
Our hearts must go out to the families that have lost their dear ones this Saturday morning and the thousands that had to leave their homes in fear. Whilst it is often said that ”trouble comes in threes” (3 landslides in Klang Valley in the space of a week), we must come to the realization that for landslides, it’s the poor regulation of hillside developments that is at fault. A total of 6 lives lost possibly due to poor regulation, corruption and profit in just one week!
This Saturday afternoon, my friend and I saw the evacuation of hundreds (perhaps a thousand or more) young and old from the condos and houses cut off by the landslide at Bukit Antarabangsa. They were cut off and without electricity and water. Parents with babies and young children, adults of varying ages had to track across steep hill tracks in muddy conditions. We were heartened by the many from the rescue services, army, bomba and relief organizations helping with their evacuation along treacherous tracks.
Yet, we left with a heavy heart. How could so many be left in such a predicament not caused by “Act of God”? Leaving aside the issue of geological stabilities and environmental risks, how in the name of progress do we have developments at hillsides that people could be so easily cut off and had to track through steep, muddy and single file path to reach help in the middle of Klang Valley? One wonders how many hillside developments around Klang Valley there are where authorities have approved developments that could literally cause residents to be locked in and emergency access made impossible when landslide or other disasters occur. We shudderred at the thought.
We can only hope that the new Selangor State Government will hold firm against the wanton destruction of our hillsides by developers. Hundreds and even thousands of unsuspecting residents that have put their trust in planning authorities will continue to be casualties if we don’t put a stop to such dangerous developments. It is time that the public stand up and give full support to the Selangor State Government. Let the onus of proof on safety of hillside development be fully with the developer. Let town planners not compromise on any development to fatten the profits of developers.
Unfortunately for residents in Kuala Lumpur, City Hall is hard of hearing and wears tinted glasses. So, be warned and be ready to challenge them directly to protect your safety. Don’t be taken in by the many platitudes and promises of the Federal authorities. Many promises and supposed regulations were in place, yet every hill in KL is not safe. Every green area is targetted for concrete. Don’t believe me, just look at the KL Daft City Plan.. Sorry, I mean KL Draft City Plan.
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Gary Yeoh
JAC for Bukit Gasing
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