Penang’s state executive council is poised to act on the Bukit Kukus landslide after receiving the investigation report regarding the incident on Wednesday (12 Dec), reported Free Malaysia Today.
“The executive council will make a decision and will make an announcement to the press,” said Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow during a press briefing at the Komtar.
The report on the tragedy was submitted by Chow’s Deputy, Ahmad Zakiyuddin Abdul Rahman, who is also the lead investigator on the incident.
The landslide occurred on 19 October at a worksite of a RM530 million elevated road project. It resulted in the deaths of nine people and injured four others. All victims are foreign construction workers who had stayed at 12 container cabins situated at the lower slopes at Bukit Kukus.
The Department of Safety and Health said that approximately 42,000 tonnes of soil and rocks fell from a height of 50 metres. The agency also revealed that those in charge of project have failed to adequately install measures to prevent soil erosion and control water seepage.
Moreover, Penang Island City Council Mayor Yew Tung Seang believes that some parties may have negligent in their duties, as they failed to properly divert the path of a water source on a hilltop.
The state authorities then established Bukit Kukus Paired Road Special Investigation Committee, consisting of officials from the Public Works Department and third-party experts.
Ahmad Zakiyuddin revealed that the committee’s goal is to determine what had led to the tragedy. However, the committee will not be the one to file the case against the parties at fault.
Later, the Penang assembly learned that the builders of the elevated road project were exempted from providing an Environment Impact Assessment report, even though this is usually required for hillslope developments. This is because it is a “collector road”, which provides access to housing estates, and is not covered by the Environmental Quality Act of 1974.
The road project includes the construction of a 5km bypass road on the slopes of the hills of Bukit Kukus that connects Relau with Bandar Baru Air Itam. It is a project by the Penang Island City Council and is being carried out by two private developers.
Its contractors are now awaiting the signal from the government on when to resume work. Prior to the October landslide, the project was expected to be ready by 2020.
Image source: The Star
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