SUBANG JAYA: Work to retrieve 4m of gas pipeline sections at Putra Heights has been delayed for a week due to bad weather, says Selangor police chief Comm Datuk Hussein Omar Khan.
He said there had been an average of 20 days of rain from the 28 days that workers had been operating there, leading to difficulties in extracting the affected pipeline.
“We also have to drain out the water every time it rains and that takes about half a day.
“It also affects soil stability,” he said, adding that 16m of the pipeline had been dug out.
“We have taken three pipe specimens that are about 16m long and we have one more section that’s around 4m to 5m long that will need to be excavated for analysis.
“For the investigation at ground zero, I estimate we’ll need another week to remove the final section so that the Occupational Safety and Health Department (DOSH) can complete its investigation.
“Specifically, DOSH will need to carry out lab analyses with the help of Sirim for material testing and several other assessments to determine the cause of the explosion,” Comm Hussein said at the scene yesterday.
He said the affected area would be handed to PETRONAS for recovery work, adding that the roads outside the closed-off ground zero area are expected to be reopened soon.
On the excavator that was believed to have been buried at the site following the explosion, he said the authorities had identified its general location.
“Its location is outside our digging zone. Digging out the excavator will disrupt the main excavation work. That will be done later.”
Yesterday, the authorities allowed members of the media to see up close the damage in the area, including the crater.
Remnants of the inferno could still be seen outside the cordoned off “ground zero”.
A playground overlooking the housing area was in shambles, with slides half melted.
Nearby, a sports car was seen with its melted bodywork, including the front lights.
Many houses with varying degrees of damage were also left empty.
Only houses further away from the blast zone were seen being repaired by contractors.
Extra security was also in place at ground zero due to suspected earth instability from the frequent rain.
Journalists were only allowed to view the crater but not the surrounding areas.
The gas pipeline fire on April 1 caused widespread destruction.
A total of 81 homes were reported to have been destroyed with more than 40% structural damage. Another 81 were partially damaged and 57 were affected but not burned while 218 homes, including those in Kampung Tengah Puchong, were unaffected.
