Apartment dwellers live in fear
Residents worry about slope stability after hills cleared for development
GEORGE TOWN: For the first time in the 10 years that he has stayed in his apartment near the Bukit Kukus paired road project, 62-year-old S. Santhara is worried.
That was where nine people died due to a landslide last month.
The retired fireman never had to worry about landslides because the hills behind his apartment in Paya Terubong were covered with trees.
“We knew the hills facing our block would not crumble as the trees held down the soil,” he said.
That was before the hills were cleared for the construction of the paired road project.
“As they started to clear the hills near my home last year, I worried about the stability of the slopes and whether there would be a landslide.
“Then, the Tanjung Bungah landslide occurred in October 2017 and I fear this place could be next,” he said.
On Oct 19, the landslide at the construction site for the paired road hit 12 containers that housed construction workers.
Besides the foreign workers who were killed after being buried alive, four others were injured.
The Tanjung Bungah landslide that struck the site of an affordable housing project in Lengkok Lembah Permai killed 11 workers, including a Malaysian.
A special committee, set up by the Penang state government, will begin investigations into the cause of the Nov 8 landslide at the Bukit Kukus project site in Paya Terubong.
Inquiry into the Tanjung Bungah landslide has yet to be completed.
The Bukit Kukus landslide, said Santhara, had taken place right behind the hill facing his apartment block.
Now, he said it was worrying whenever it rained.
“Anything can happen at any time. If I have the opportunity, I will move out,” he said at his home.
Already, he said, there was landslip on parts of the hill after the trees were cleared.
“There was erosion. It (the hill) has now been covered with sheets but we still worry when it rains.
“During rainfall, a lot of mud water wash down and drains overflow, spilling onto the road,” he said.
On the day of the landslide, K. Kalaiselvan, 43, who lives on the 18th floor of an apartment in the vicinity, heard a loud crash.
“It sounded like rocks and sand falling. Later, I realised it was a landslide.
“I am worried we could be next,” he said, adding that the slopes were bare and threatening.
“I run a coffee shop and have lived here for the past 15 years. This is my home.
“As I live on a really high floor, it is worrying whenever it rains,” he said.