DEMOLISHING MYTHS
People living near the Highland Towers say bringing down the structures will finally bury disturbing stories about the place.
ON Dec 11, 1993, the Highland Towers apartment in Taman Hillview, Ulu Klang collapsed as a result of a major landslide.
The collapse involved Block 1 of the Highland Towers, resulting in the deaths of 48 people and led to the evacuation of residents from the remaining two blocks due to safety concerns.
The abandoned Block 2 and 3 of the Highland Towers still stand, but having been largely stripped, are little more than concrete and brick shells.
The area has been the scene of much vandalism, and is in complete disarray and ruin from exposure to the elements.
Due to the number of deaths that occurred in the area, some residents believe the towers are haunted.
Many people who have a fascination with the supernatural began visiting the site in droves.
Some came to test their spiritual strength, or to get lottery numbers, while others went just for the thrill of it.
Armi Abdul Majid, 31, was staying in Keramat when the tragedy happened.
It left such an impression on him that even when he graduated from Germany and returned home, he became fixated and wanted to explore more of the Highland Towers.
Along with his friend, Mohd Fauzy Mohd Rahim, 31, he formed Projekt OFO (Oh-sem Flying Objekt) in 2015.
They were both fans of drones and one of their first ideas was to explore the ruins from above.
“I had known about the Highland Towers tragedy since I was young.
“It has always been a big mystery to me. You heard many stories and versions about the place,” said Armi.
“I decided it was time to explore the place with drones and find out if the place was haunted.”
That video, titled Projekt OFO — Land of the Haunting Highland Towers, went viral because of its cinematography and haunting music. To date, the video has more than 466,000 views.
The more important thing is that, Armi did not discover any supernatural or scary phenomena during the shoot.
The video did debunk the urban legend of the Highland Towers.
“Truthfully, we didn’t find any ghost or scary entity when we shot the video over three days and two nights. If there was such a thing, we would not have lasted that long,” he chuckled.
By right, after Projekt OFO, it should have ended people’s fascination with the site. But it did not.
A quick search on YouTube shows dozens of amateur videos about the socalled haunting experience and paranormal activities at the abandoned Highland
Towers. Most of these were shot by thrill-seekers on their mobile phones.
“The fascination with the site by thrill-seekers continues to this day.
“These people, especially the younger ones, are going into the towers and shooting with their phones. They do not seem to be afraid at all.”
He said plans by the authorities to demolish the towers by June 2019 were welcome.
“The place is not just an eyesore but unsafe too. People who go there are risking their life. There are no ghosts or spirits there.
“Those who claim to have seen ghosts or supernatural beings are exaggerating. Or they may have been hallucinating, seeing only what they really want to see.”
Ustaz Safri Abu Talib, 36, the imam at Surau Al Muhajirin, located in the housing area adjacent to the Highland Towers, advises youngsters who pass by the area to stop visiting the abandoned towers in search of ghosts, demons or other supernatural entities.
“This urban legend surrounding the Highland Towers is a waste of time.
“There is nothing there for the people to see, except their own dark desires.”
Safri hopes the demolition of the Highland Towers site after over 20 years will bring a new lease of life to the area and bury the tragic past for good.