PUTRAJAYA — A multi-agency investigation into the sinkhole incident at Masjid India, Kuala Lumpur has found it occurred as a result of anthropogenic or human activity, weather, and soil erosionbelow the surface of the area involved.
The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability (NRES), which announced this, said a technical report on the investigation results on the geology and subsurface structures of the incident area will be prepared by a task force on soil structure in the Masjid India area which is led led by Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL).
The report will be ready within three months, NRES said in a statement today.
“NRES through the Department of Mineral and Geoscience Malaysia (JMG) has assisted in the subsurface investigation of the sinkhole incident in the Masjid India area involving an Indian woman.
“The JMG investigation has used Ground Penetration Radar (GPR) equipment to obtain a picture of the geological strata and subsurface utility system of the incident area for the purpose of a comprehensive recovery process by the responsible party,” the ministry said.
Kuala Lumpur is safe to live in, it added.
For long-term planning, NRES said strengthening monitoring, maintenance, procedures and subsurface investigation methods on underground structures will be done to identify and avoid any threats of landslides and sinkholes that may occur.
According to NRES, JMG is completing data on the Klang Valley’s subsurface area which covers 10 local authorities through the Greater KL Sub-Surface Geological Mapping Project.
“In terms of geology, the bedrock in Kuala Lumpur is based on an estimated 30% limestone and 70% granite and metasedimentary rocks, namely the Kenny Hill formation, Hawthornden schist and Dinding schist.
“The sinkhole area is based on schist, phyllite and quartzite rocks of the Kenny Hill Formation,” according to NRES.
On August 23, 48-year-old G. Vijaya Lakshmi from Kuppam, Andhra Pradesh, India went missing after falling into an eight-meter deep hole in Jalan Masjid India. She had been walking to a temple when the pavement suddenly opened up under her.
The search and rescue (SAR) operation for her was stopped on August 31, after taking into account the safety factor of the SAR operation team. – September 7, 2024