SUBANG JAYA: It was supposed to be a quiet second day of Hari Raya for residents in Putra Heights when all hell broke loose.
“All of a sudden, we heard a loud bang and then total chaos.
“We immediately left the house and soon saw other residents leaving too,” said a resident who only wanted to be known as Shahril.
Shahril lives about 200m away from the scene of the 8am burst pipeline explosion here on Tuesday (April 1).
Another resident who goes by Muhammad said they could feel the intense heat immediately after the explosion.
“The fire was rising extremely high, and we made the decision to leave immediately.
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“Shortly after, the firemen came and instructed everyone to evacuate.
“The boom gate was also opened to allow everyone a swift evacuation,” said Muhammad, who also lives in the area.
An Air Selangor spokesman here said it was difficult to even get within 300m of the fire.
“The heat is still too strong. We can’t get close at all,” he said.
The towering inferno is visible from kilometres away.
Fire and Rescue Department teams from the Subang Jaya, Shah Alam and Puchong fire stations were deployed.
Images and videos of the inferno have flooded social media,a with one video showing the carnage wrecked by the explosion on a nearby house.
Holes on the wall of the house were seen, possibly caused by shrapnel from the initial explosion. Clothes hanging out to dry were singed and charred as the flames raged on in the background.
