SHAH ALAM, Dec 26 — The cleanup of an oil spill after a crash involving a palm oil tanker at Km27.9 of the Karak Highway towards Kuala Lumpur yesterday will be completed by tonight.
State executive councillor for public health and environment Jamaliah Jamaluddin said this was due to the thick grease, whose removal requires manual scooping.
“As at 10.30am today, cleanup progress at the site was 60 per cent. The appointed contractor is working with the Selangor Water Management Authority (Luas), Pengurusan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd and Indah Water Konsortium (IWK).
“Four vacuum tankers from IWK have been deployed to suction the oil residue from the highway sump, while manual cleanup is underway to expedite the process,” she said in a statement today.
Jamaliah said Luas’ inspection of the crash site and surroundings found that the spill, involving about 20 tonnes of oil, had entered a nearby drain.
“Luas’ check found that the spill, which accumulated in the highway sump, had flowed into a Sungai Gombak tributary, disrupting raw water supply to the Sungai Gombak Water Treatment Plant from 2am to 6pm yesterday,” she said.
Jamaliah explained that Luas coordinated the cleanup at the site through appointed contractors and directed the tanker company to undertake the work, including scooping out the solidified oil residue from the drain and sump.
“Luas also implemented preventive measures by deploying three units of oil booms at the Sungai Gombak tributary to trap oil entering the river. Ten activated carbon bags were also placed in the affected area to neutralise odours,” she said.
The highway concessionaire, AFA Prime Bhd (formerly known as ANIH Bhd), promptly managed the oil spill by piling sawdust on the road and constructing soil barriers in the drain.
According to media reports, a 41-year-old tanker driver survived after his vehicle overturned on the Karak Highway near Genting Sempah, believed to be due to a brake failure.
Gombak police chief Noor Ariffin Mohamad Nasir said the tanker was en route from Kelantan to Port Klang when the 12.30am incident.
— Bernama
