Retaining wall near Jalan Genting Klang collapses amid continuous rain, earthquake-like tremors felt, witness says

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 22 — The collapse of part of a retaining wall at Taman Bunga Raya, Jalan Genting Klang, near Kem Wardieburn, due to continuous rains last night, caused a strong tremor similar to a minor earthquake.

Azmi Baharudin, 55, the owner of the affected house, said the collapse also shook the ground of his house, located behind the retaining wall.

“It had been raining heavily since 4pm, and suddenly I heard a loud noise behind the house, and the ground started shaking,” he said when Bernama met him outside his house today.

He said that immediately after the incident, he went to check the area behind his house and found that part of the retaining wall had collapsed.

“About 10 minutes later, authorities arrived to inspect the area, and we were asked to temporarily evacuate for safety reasons as there was still water flowing down the slope, and the rain had not stopped yet,” he said.

Azmi said that for now, he, his wife and two daughters have decided to find temporary shelter at the surau, in the residential area designated as a temporary accommodation place for those affected.

A Bernama investigation revealed that about 10 houses along the retaining wall had been cordoned off by police with yellow caution tape, while members of the Fire and Rescue Department Malaysia (JBPM) and Kuala Lumpur City Hall’s rescue team monitored the situation due to the continuous flow of water into the ground.

Earlier, Kuala Lumpur’s JBPM said in a statement that part of the retaining wall collapsed around 5.40pm, affecting a house, but no casualties were reported.

Meanwhile, another affected resident, Amran Awang, 19, said it was the first time such an incident had happened in the residential area since he had been living there.

“At the time of the incident, I was outside and when I returned home, the police advised me to temporarily move to the surau. I don’t know how many days I have to move, the police only told me that it would be until the situation is deemed safe,” he said.

Meanwhile, Kuala Lumpur Traffic Investigation and Enforcement Department (JSPT) chief ACP Mohd Zamzuri Mohd Isa said all lanes from Jalan Genting Klang towards Middle Ring Road 2 (MRR2) at the incident site were temporarily closed to all vehicles.

Speaking to Bernama, he said all vehicles from the city centre were being diverted to Jalan Tumbuhan and Jalan 1/27a towards Wangsa Maju, and police officers had been deployed at the site to ensure smooth traffic flow.

He added that traffic in four other places in the capital was still slow due to congestion on roads after continuous rains since yesterday afternoon.

“The affected areas due to the rising waters are Jalan Sultan Azlan Shah and Jalan Ipoh, Jalan Genting Klang towards Jalan Usahawan, Jalan Kuching at the exit of Segambut roundabout towards the city centre and Jalan Kuching towards Taman Wahyu,” he said. — Bernama