WAKING up to heavy rain in the morning, Raj Vivekananthan decided to leave early for work.
Had he not, he said his car could have been destroyed when a 60m stretch of a retention wall in front of the four-storey low-cost flats he lived in came crashing along Jalan Sepadu 7, Taman United, Kuala Lumpur at about 10.30am.
“I am lucky that I had left. If not, my car would also have been buried by the soil as I usually park in front of my apartment unit.
“My wife alerted me to the wall collapse when she was awakened by the loud rumbles.
“I rushed back from work, quickly packed some essentials and sent my wife and my seven-month-old baby to my relative’s house,” said the 32-year-old storekeeper whose unit is located on the ground floor.
Raj said muddy water had seeped into his home damaging several pieces of furniture that he had just bought.
“We are devastated, but luckily, my family is safe,” he told StarMetro.
He said he witnessed neighbours rushing into their homes to retrieve valuables and daily essentials.
Residents from two blocks of the low-cost flats, comprising 104 units, were ordered to evacuate, due to ongoing soil movement and persistent rainfall.
It is learnt that they have been asked to move to a temporary relief centre in Sri Petaling.
According to the Kuala Lumpur Fire and Rescue Department, debris from the retention wall fell onto the road, burying a car, toppling another over. Several motorcycles were also affected.
The collapse also caused cracks on a neighbourhood cul-de-sac slope (Lorong Sekata 1), which also damaged the porch area of two bungalows at the end of the road.
Kuala Lumpur mayor Datuk Fadlun Mak Ujud was seen at the landslide site, but did not speak to the media.
However, in a statement, Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) said it was conducting a water diversion operation to block the flow of water into drains at the affected area.
“This reduces the risk of land movement before subsequent work is carried out.
“City Hall will continue to monitor the soil movement along Jalan Sepadu 6 and Jalan Sepadu 7,” the statement said.
No casualties were reported.
