Repairs on Taman Yarl sinkhole to complete in 10 days

An IWK worker excavating the sinkhole in Jalan Awan Jawa as part of the repair works.

IT will take between seven and 10 days to complete repair works on a sinkhole in Jalan Awan Jawa in Taman Yarl, Kuala Lumpur, that appeared last Friday.

Indah Water Konsortium Sdn Bhd (IWK) in a statement said investigations into the cause of the collapse were being carried out concurrently with the repair works.

“The underground pipe was confirmed to be an IWK pipe.

“Since then, IWK has barricaded the area to prevent traffic from entering the area while excavation work is being done to find out the cause of the collapse.

“Repair works are being carried out in the affected area and are expected to be completed around seven to 10 days,” the statement read.

IWK disclosed that excavation had been progressively carried out since Sunday and was expected to reach 4m deep.

“It would need to go to a depth of at least 5m to ascertain the cause of the collapse.

“Proper measures are taken to ensure the safety of the work progress as there may be other third party assets in the underground channel.”

Additionally, the company said it would only carry out the work during the day in consideration for the residential community nearby. It said this to explain the length of time needed for the repair works and in determining the collapse.

IWK urged road users to exercise caution when using the road, adding that the safety of the community remained its priority.

Meanwhile, Taman Yarl Residents Association member Jagdev Singh was glad that IWK had started rectification works.

“We are very concerned as this happened just outside the houses. Luckily, there were no vehicles on the road at the time.

“We hope IWK will provide us with regular updates on the repair works,” he added.

StarMetro had reported that residents had become alarmed after the sinkhole appeared late Friday. It had increased in size the following morning, forcing the temporary closure of the road by Kuala Lumpur City Hall.

The sinkhole, which occurred on a dead-end road, had been partially cordoned off.

It is estimated to be about 3m to 4m deep.

Preliminary investigation at the site showed that the sinkhole was caused by a pipe leak.