Support for RCI on Putra Heights gas pipeline fire

ON April 3 last year, Pertubuhan Ikatan Komuniti Selamat (Alliance for A Safe Community) issued its first formal statement following the disastrous gas pipeline fire at Putra Heights. We called for a transparent investigation that would provide the public with real answers.

When the Parliamentary Special Select Committee (PSSC) released its findings last July, we spoke out again, pointing out that the report left too many stones unturned.

We have been monitoring the investigation for the last nine months, but the continued silence from the authorities suggests a worrying indifference to public concern. Hence, we now firmly support the call for a royal commission of inquiry (RCI) into the incident.

This is no longer just about one incident; it is about the professional accountability we expect when high-pressure infrastructure is placed near our homes.

While the previous committee did its work, it lacked the legal “teeth” to get to the bottom of the matter. An RCI is unique because it has the power to summon anyone to testify under oath and to demand the release of technical records that have so far remained private. Without this level of independent authority, we are simply scratching the surface.

A primary focus of this inquiry must be the effectiveness of the emergency response system. Every high-pressure system is designed with automatic shut-off valves intended to isolate a leak the moment it happens.

If these valves had closed immediately as designed, the fuel source would have been cut off, potentially preventing a manageable leak from turning into a massive inferno.

We need to know if these automatic systems failed, or if human intervention was delayed and, more importantly, why.

We must also look at the technology used to protect us. Modern safety standards shouldn’t just rely on reacting to a fire; they should also involve high-tech sensors that detect ground movement or pipe stress long before a rupture occurs.

We need to know if these systems were in place, how they were maintained, and who is accountable for the gaps in the oversight programme that allowed this to happen.

While there is much discussion about “buffer zones” and how much space should be between pipes and houses, a buffer zone is only one part of the solution.

The real shield for the community is a system that works, a response that is timely, and an authority that is transparent.

TAN SRI LEE LAM THYE

and CHIN YEW SIN

Alliance For A Safe Community