KUALA LUMPUR: Two scuba divers have been deployed and will take turns to enter the chamber to determine whether the victim was washed away by the strong current or otherwise, said Kuala Lumpur Fire and Rescue Services Department director Nordin Pauzi.
“We cannot make an early assessment; this will be made by the scuba team. At the moment two scuba divers have been deployed and they will take turns to enter (the chamber) due to its narrow pathway.
“Our focus is near where the victim went missing including the inside of the drainage. This is why we needed to call the Indah Water Konsortium (IWK). The flow is according to gravity, maybe it is only moving one way.
“So we called the IWK to find the right traps that could possibly exist. It is understood that the drainage ends at a sewage plant in Lembah Pantai,” he told the press here on Friday (Aug 23).
The rescue teams are studying the current and the width of the pipe (of the chamber), he added.
The Civil Defence Force are also involved in the SAR operations.
Nordin said the Special Tactical Operation and Rescue Team of Malaysia (STORM) is well-trained to carry out the work and they have already dug 10 metres deep.
However, he said the digging is done around the concrete-sealed chamber as the soil had collapsed around it.
Sinkhole at Masjid India, Kuala Lumpur. Photo Jabatan Penerangan WPKL/Facebook
“Right now, there are some cracks or debris that could allow the water (from the chamber) to flow out from the hole. As such we have to ascertain whether we can enter the hole or find anything.
“We will continue the search, but we cannot positively point out where she has gone missing. So, the scuba team will enter the chamber.
“But we have to also make sure there are no other risks involved,” he said.
When asked if the surroundings were safe, Nordin assured that it was safe and businesses could operate as usual.
Earlier Nordin accompanied the newly appointed Kuala Lumpur Mayor Datuk Seri Paduka Maimunah Mohd Sharif, who visited the site of the incident.
She was briefed by the SAR team on the efforts to find the victim.
“For the record, there is no digging activity carried out around the sinkhole site. The Kuala Lumpur City Hall has informed the utility agencies involved to check related assets including Air Selangor, which has also shut off the existing water supply.
“City Hall has made a review of the underground utility line in the area involved and found a 1.5-meter sewage pipe diameter at the location involved. The IWK has been on site to help City Hall together with the Bomba.
“City Hall along with other agencies are tracking along the line of sewage pipes to identify the victims since evening. To date, the victim has yet to be found,” she said.
Meanwhile, City Hall has deployed machinery and personnel rescuers to help with the search, she added.
Maimunah, who met with the victim’s husband expressed her sadness and sympathy as a result of the incident.
