Living near a ticking time bomb

Residents of Taman Bukit Utama fear that Lot 541 will be next in line for a landslide.

KUALA LUMPUR: Each night Hajah Fatimah, 60, falls asleep with the same worry on her mind: Would the man-made slope in her residential area finally collapse tonight?

Known as the Lot 541, the nine-tiered slope sits adjacent to Taman Bukit Utama in Bukit Antarabangsa, Hulu Kelang, Selangor. Flanking it on one side is the Puncak Athenauem condominiums and on other, the now abandoned Highland Towers.

Fatimah led a quiet life in Taman Bukit Utama for 10 years until a landslide in 2008 claimed five lives from the neighbouring Taman Bukit Mewah.

Since then she and the rest of Bukit Antarabangsa’s community have kept a watchful eye on the hillslopes surrounding them. And right now Lot 541 is the centre of their attention.

“Look at those tilting trees!” she gestured to the row of trees behind a low metal fence that separated the slope from the residences. “If the soil beneath it crumbles we’re finished! And what if it happens in the middle of the night? Of course I’m scared!”

Fellow resident, Dr Rafick Khan Abdul Rahman, has graver concerns. The retired military doctor became a household name after fighting for the declassification of the Bukit Antarabangsa Landslide report.
He has since made it his mission to monitor the hillslopes of Bukit Antarabangsa and is adamant that Lot 541 is a ticking time bomb.

“The vegetation is overgrown and the drains are choked with debris,” he said. “This slope is meant to be cleared every two weeks but the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council (MPAJ) only comes around once every two months or whenever we kick up a fuss.”

Ominous past

But it isn’t just the unkempt surrounding that has Rafick up in arms. Lot 541 has an ominous past. Its badly designed drainage system was responsible for the Highland Towers tragedy in 1993. The drainage has since been improved but poor maintenance has once again created a fertile ground for landslides.

“Erosion has already taken place at the foot of the slope,” Rafick told FMT during a site visit. “I’ve chased MPAJ for two years to monitor the soil movement and maintain this lot but I’ve been ignored.”

“None of my dozen e-mails to (MPAJ president) Mohammad Yacob and (MPAJ urban services and health director) Sarodin Shahri have been replied nor have they visited the site. So I will hold them both personally responsible if anything happens here.”

Rafick, however, has the ear of MPAJ’s slope division head, Zafrul Fazry Mohd Fauzi, who was also present that morning. Zafrul agreed that Lot 541 was in dire need of a clean-up but explained that the task belonged to Alam Flora.

“This is quite bad,” he said as he took in the waist-high grass, clogged drains and slanting trees. “The trees are tilting more than they should which indicates soil movement. And they are large canopied trees which adds weight to the soil.”

According to Zafrul, the Bukit Antarabangsa master plan indicated that the township is prone to water retention which makes irrigation of prime importance.
His division has responded by inserting large pipes into the slope to drain out the water but Zafrul said that more need to be done for water flow in the drains.

On whether Lot 541 posed any risk to Puncak Athenaeum, he replied, “Not if it is properly maintained and monitored.”

Critical condition

Geologist Professor Tajul Anuar Jamaluddin of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia was blunter. He described Lot 541 as “a high-risk slope in critical condition” as there was evidence of improper engineering.

“To make matters worse, it has been left unattended for a long while,” he added. “All the above observations are good ingredients and indicators of subtle slope movements.”

When contacted, Mohammad told FMT to liaise with Zafrul whom he said “knows everything about Bukit Antarabangsa”. Sarodin’s department, which has contracted Alam Flora to carry out the maintenance work, also issued a similar request.

“They always refer the public and media to me,” Zafrul sighed. “My role is checking slope stability but since poor maintenance is the cause of instability I end up being the spokesperson. I can’t comment on the contract with Alam Flora though, as I’m not privy to the details.”

Meanwhile, Ampang MP Zuraida Kamaruddin, who has frequented Lot 541, is appalled at the condition and convinced that more funds are needed to continue stabilisation work in the area.

“We can’t just leave it hanging like this,” she said. “I’ve had no response from the Public Works Department on this matter and Alam Flora claims that it was never assigned to Lot 541.”
“This is a very serious matter and we’re all in the dark right now. I will bring this matter up during the next parliamentary session.”