AMPANG JAYA, Sept 3 — More than 2,000 residents of Flat PKNS Taman Keramat Permai here are gravely worried about soil settling issues occurring near their housing area.
According to Flat PKNS Taman Keramat Permai joint management body (JMB) chairman Sulaiman Sapuan, the most recent incident on August 20 saw the ground floor corridor at the back of a unit in Block D settle by almost 2m.
He urged the local authority to implement a long-term solution, including conducting a study of the land structure to identify the cause of the problem and the risks faced by residents.
“A complaint to the MPAJ (Ampang Jaya Municipal Council) about the latest incident was filed on August 22. A representative from the MPAJ’s Commissioner of Building Division visited on Friday and assessed the situation. They deemed it not very dangerous and suggested the JMB handle repairs.
“The JMB can repair the damage, but our main concern is the uncertainty of the soil structure underneath the building, which might lead to a recurrence,” he told Bernama when met today.
Sulaiman also noted that apart from Block D, soil structure problems have been identified in Blocks E, F, J, and M of the flats on Jalan AU1B/1, which were built about 30 years ago.
He added that the most serious problems occurred in the 1990s when Block C had to be completely demolished and rebuilt nearby.
Recalling the incident on August 20, Mohd Zaini Mohd Zaidin, 62, said his wife was painting the iron grilles at the back of their ground-floor flat while seated on a chair when the soil unexpectedly settled.
“The incident caused my wife to fall from the chair, but she was unhurt.
“I truly hope the authorities will act to prevent the soil settling from expanding and putting the safety of residents, including the elderly and children, at risk,” he said.
Another resident, Rokiah Jais, 65, said she worries whenever it rains heavily, following a 2m-deep soil settling in the drain next to her house in Block J five months ago.
“When it poured heavily at 3am yesterday, I was terrified and prayed no incident would occur as the hole is right next to my ground-floor unit,” she said.
In April 2019, a soil settling caused cracks in Block F, resulting in the evacuation of 222 residents.
— Bernama
