Putra Heights pipeline blast victims want repairs expedited

Francis Koh, vice-chairman of the Putra Harmoni Residents Association, says 10 of the 49 homes were scheduled for completion by early December.

The roof of one of the houses affected by the April 1 blaze being repaired.

PETALING JAYA:

 Putra Heights residents whose homes were damaged in the April 1 gas pipeline explosion and fire are urging that repair works be expedited, saying the lack of progress has left many families unable to return.

Francis Koh, vice-chairman of the Putra Harmoni Residents Association, said 49 of the 81 homes damaged in the incident were shortlisted for repair under a government programme involving houses with structural damage exceeding 40%.

Francis Koh.

The affected homes span three neighbourhoods — Amber (21 homes), Topaz (22) and Citrine (6).

Of the 49 badly damaged homes, Koh said 10 homes from the Amber section were scheduled for completion by early December, based on written commitments issued to residents.

“Ten of these houses were supposed to be completed by Dec 6, but as of now, only two homes have been completed, with the owners signing off on the repairs,” he told FMT.

“The rest of the houses are still undergoing repairs at various stages.”

Koh said many residents have had to rent homes in USJ, Subang Jaya, other parts of Putra Heights and Puchong for the past nine months, with the government paying compensation of RM2,000 per month for temporary accommodation.

Two construction workers repairing one of the homes affected by the blaze.

The government announced the repair and rebuilding programme on April 30 last year, with housing and local government minister Nga Kor Ming allocating RM46 million for housing repairs and infrastructure recovery in Putra Heights.

Sime Darby Property was subsequently appointed to carry out the repair and rebuilding works at Taman Putra Harmoni, with work expected to begin one month after the incident.

Koh said residents were seeking clarity on the scope and pace of repairs, including the terms agreed between Sime Darby Property and Nga’s ministry, which he said were slowing down progress.

“We need a clear, written scope of work and timelines. We followed up on June 1 and again on July 14, but there is still uncertainty over repair standards, and completion dates.”

Kota Kemuning state assemblyman Preakas Sampunathan said he was informed by the ministry’s officials that a meeting between the residents and the authorities will be held in early January to resolve the delay.

Preakas said there were concerns over both delays and repair quality, adding that contractors were constrained by regulations that did not always account for differences between houses.

“The contractors are following the regulations, but the question is whether these regulations can be applied uniformly to every house, because each house has different defects,” he said when contacted.

When contacted, Sime Darby said it would not comment on the matter at this stage. - FMT