By Farah Wahida:
The Ipoh City Council has assured residents that it will continue to monitor hill slope developments to avoid a similar incident that happened to a concrete embankment at Bukit Setiawangsa in Kuala Lumpur a month ago.
Datuk Bandar Datuk Roshidi Hashim said they have already instructed council’s building division assistant director and architect to monitor both under-construction and completed projects in the Kledang and Meru areas daily.
“We will notify the developer if we discover any elements of landslide,” he said.
This follows the collapse of a 43m concrete embankment that shocked residents of Bukit Setiawangsa on 28 December. The retaining wall holding luxury bungalows had partially collapsed and one of the units was affected.
Meanwhile, the state government has formed a special committee that will study various slopes in Perak, said Datuk Dr Mah Hang Soon, State Local Government Committee Chairman.
He said landslides happen due to various reasons, including clearing of trees on hilltops and long hours of rain.
“We have identified landslide-prone areas along 43 stretches of federal roads and 40 stretches of state roads,” he noted, adding that over RM16 million was spent to carry out repair on landslide-hit slopes.
“We are carrying out repair works and are planning to conduct a geological mapping of the stretch as part of our preventive measures,” added Dr Mah.
He advised landowners near Cameron Highlands and other hill slopes to consult with technical government agencies prior to any land clearing activities.
Farah Wahida, Editor of PropertyGuru, wrote this story. To contact her about this or other stories email farahwahida@propertyguru.com.my
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