Malaysia freezes hillside projects following massive landslide

Government vows to assess all settlements for risk, but sceptics say little was done after earlier tragedies
Hazlin Hassan, Straits Times 7 Dec 08;

KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi banned hillside developments and sought a review of existing settlements after a massive landslide in a suburban part of the city killed four, crushed homes and forced thousands to evacuate.

'I am sure this will incur the wrath of individual land owners and developers but enough is enough,' Datuk Seri Abdullah said, ordering current projects to be frozen as investigations are carried out.

'Future projects will also not go on to prevent any further worsening of the soil conditions at the hilly area,' he added.

The latest disaster in Bukit Antarabangsa in Ampang on Saturday buried 14 houses, cut off access for thousands of residents and disrupted water, power and phone lines, hindering search and rescue efforts.

Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak yesterday sought state government support to discontinue projects in risky areas while Deputy Minister of Housing and Local Government Robert Law said owners of homes in risky areas would be asked to vacate the premises.

He said a National Slope Masterplan, due to be ready early next year, will contain a list of risky slopes and guidelines for construction.

These would be used by the Ministry to assess projects, Mr Law said during a visit to the affected site yesterday. But he did not give any details.

The upmarket estate of Bukit Antarabangsa is home to the rich-and-famous and their families. Yesterday, singer Siti Nurhaliza's husband Khalid Mohamad Jiwa described his shock at what he saw.

'House No. 13 was pushed all the way to where house No. 11 was, two lots away,' he said. The singer's cousin lives in the area but was safe.

Landslides have rocked the nation in the past. But critics and survivors of previous disasters are convinced that such tragedies will go on.

Back in 1993, 48 people died in the last major landslide that led to the infamous Highland Towers collapse. The government had announced a ban on hill-slope development then.

It was forgotten.

Saturday's landslide, which happened about a kilometre from where Highland Towers was located, prompted bitter memories for former deputy premier Musa Hitam who lost his son and daughter-in-law in the earlier tragedy.

'Nobody seems to have learnt from the lessons of the Highland Towers tragedy,' he told the national Bernama news agency.

Plastic surgeon Dr Benjamin George, 80, who survived the Highland Towers tragedy, said the cycle would go on.

'The politicians will climb up their helicopters and say all development must stop,' he said.

'There will be a stop-work order for two months but in the third month the tractors will start work again.'

Meanwhile, The Star quoted a landslide expert as saying that an abandoned project could have been the cause of the landslide on Saturday.

Dr Gue See Sew, a geotechnical engineer who specialises in landslides, said abandoned projects located on slopes make adjoining areas vulnerable, due to lack of maintenance activity.

Two rows of abandoned double storey units, are located just above the disaster-affected area, he noted, adding that the projects could have been lying idle for more than twenty years.

Malaysia bans hillside developments after landslide
Channel NewsAsia 6 Dec 08;

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has banned hillside developments after a weekend landslide in suburban Kuala Lumpur killed four people and forced thousands to evacuate.

"I am sure this will incur the wrath of individual land owners and developers but enough is enough," Abdullah said, according to Sunday's Star, ordering current projects to be frozen while soil tests are carried out.

"Future projects will also not go on to prevent any further worsening of the soil conditions at the hilly area," he told the daily after a series of landslides in northeastern Kuala Lumpur.

The latest disaster hit early Saturday, burying 14 houses at an upmarket estate, cutting off access for thousands of residents and disrupting water, electricity and phone lines.

Among the four dead was a 20-year-old who was found by his father buried under the rubble still clutching a mobile phone, the Star reported. One person is reportedly still missing.

Police ordered 3,000 to 5,000 residents living nearby to evacuate their homes.

The landslide occurred after days of heavy rains in the area, which is prone to slippages. In 2006 four people were killed and 43 homes destroyed in a nearby suburb.

And in 1993 a landslide triggered by heavy rains caused a 12-storey condominium tower to collapse, killing 48 people.

"Malaysians never want to learn from past experiences. They want good views while developers only seek to profit... no one takes safety and soil stability into consideration," the prime minister said.

"We will be courting more tragedies if we do not care and protect hillsides," he said.

- AFP/yt