Key Sabah road link cut
Heavy rain washes out section of Kota Kinabalu-sandakan route
KOTA KINABALU: Heavy rainfall “washed out” a section of the key road linking the state capital with the state’s east coast.
Though Public Works Department (PWD) engineers managed to create a bypass, it was only passable to light vehicles. Heavy vehicles were re-directed to the northern route to get to the east coast.
Sabah PWD director Datuk John Anthony said the spot at KM120 of the Kota Kinabalu-sandakan road caved in at about midnight on Monday.
“The crater is about 7m deep. Our engineers are trying to upgrade the bypass to allow heavy vehicles to pass through too,’’ he said when contacted yesterday.
Anthony said engineers were also checking on the unaffected stretch of the road as a safeguard.
He said lorries and buses heading to the east coast towns of Sandakan, Lahad Datu and Tawau could use the northern link road to the east coast.
The affected stretch is in the Ranau district and the next town of Telupid is about 100km away. Motorists using the northern ring road will have to drive an additional 200km to reach Telupid.
Anthony said the cost of remedial work could work out to up to RM600,000, adding that it would take about a month to complete.
“We will be applying for federal funds for the repairs,’’ he added.