KL tree mishap: DBKL instructed to set up new guidelines to manage ageing trees

KUALA LUMPUR: The Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) has been instructed to come up with new guidelines to manage the city's ageing trees and prevent future accidents.

The Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Dr Zaliha Mustafa, said the urgency of cataloguing older trees, many of which are between 50 and 80 years old, was more pressing now than ever due to unpredictable weather conditions.

"There is a pressing need to act swiftly," Dr Zaliha said during a press conference at the site near Jalan Sultan Ismail, where a man was killed and 17 vehicles damaged after a large tree toppled onto his vehicle during an afternoon thunderstorm.

Dr Zaliha, who visited the site alongside Kuala Lumpur mayor Datuk Seri Kamarulzaman Mat Salleh, said that the local authority conducts biennial inspections with a certified arborist.

"This tree was under private supervision, but we need to increase the frequency of these inspections, especially given the unpredictable weather conditions," she said.

"Sometimes trees appear healthy on the outside, but internally they are not, which is why it's critical to establish proper guidelines," she added.