Landslide damages eight houses in Gombak village following heavy rain

 

GOMBAK: A 71-year-old woman stood terrified at the sight of her kitchen wall collapsing while part of her house nearly slid down with a landslide following heavy rain at Kampung Orang Asli Batu 12 here on Wednesday (Dec 3).

Halimah Yunos, one of 47 affected residents, said the incident occurred at 7pm after continuous rain caused soil movement along the water channel running through the village.

"As soon as I realised the kitchen floor had collapsed, I called my son, who lives next door, to help move the items in the kitchen to the centre of the house before we headed to the relief centre.

"It was frightening in the heavy rain. Thankfully, I was not in the kitchen at that moment," she said when met at the Batu 12 Orang Asli Multipurpose Hall relief centre on Friday.

She said soil movement had been detected since Nov 25, but Wednesday's incident made her home unsafe to live in.

Another resident, Mahadil Ali, 55, said this was the first landslide incident since the settlement opened in 1991.

He blamed water and construction debris from the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) project, located about 200m uphill and channelled into the village's waterway, for contributing to the soil instability.

"If we are asked to relocate, I will agree because the ground under my house is no longer safe," he said.

A representative from the Gombak MP's Office, Hazmimi Johar, who visited the victims at the relief centre, said the relocation of eight families on Wednesday night was coordinated with the Orang Asli Development Department (Jakoa), the Gombak District Office and rescue teams.

"All affected residents will remain at the relief centre until a safer resettlement area is identified, and food and essential aid will continue to be provided," he said, adding that about 1,400 Orang Asli live in 290 houses in the village.

Meanwhile, Selangor Fire and Rescue Department deputy director (operations) Ahmad Mukhlis Mokhtar said an emergency call was received at about 7.10pm, and a team from the Selayang Fire Station was sent to the location.

He said checks at the site found a landslide about 7.6m high covering an area of 100sqft, affecting eight houses. No casualties were reported. - Bernama