KUALA LUMPUR: Although elements of crime and negligence are among the elements currently being investigated by the Royal Malaysian Police, other factors are also being taken into account in efforts to identify the cause of the gas pipeline fire incident in Putra Heights, Subang Jaya last Tuesday.
Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Razarudin Husain said other factors such as soil movement beneath the surface of the incident location also need to be looked into in the investigation.
“Currently, the police investigation is also focusing on criminal and negligence elements. Some say it was only caused by human factors, but in fact there is also the possibility of ground movement below the surface.
“High pressure from the water flow, and various other factors could also be the cause,“ he said when met at the Incident Control Post (PKTK) in Jalan Putra Harmoni, Putra Heights, Subang Jaya today.
In addition, Razarudin said the investigation operation at the scene of the incident involved more than 10 agencies such as the Fire and Rescue Department (JBPM) and the forensic team.
“The investigation includes from a geotechnical perspective, namely the condition of the ground in the ‘ground zero’ area, that is an important part of the investigation.
“The police, fire and forensic teams are also carrying out their duties at the location to assess the level of safety. The fire team will ensure that all forensic investigations are carried out with strict safety monitoring,“ he said.
According to him, this was done to determine the strength of the soil at the incident location as well as to avoid the risk of other unwanted incidents such as landslides.
Commenting further, Razarudin said the safety and well-being of visitors in the area where the incident occurred was the main issue being stressed by the authorities.
The Petronas gas pipeline fire at 8.10am last Tuesday resulted in flames rising more than 30 metres high with temperatures reaching 1,000 degrees Celsius and took almost eight hours to be completely extinguished.
The Ministry of Health (MOH) announced that 38 of the total 146 victims of the tragedy are still being treated in hospitals and clinics, comprising 18 victims in government hospitals while the other 20 were in private health facilities.
Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari said that so far, out of the 437 houses that have been inspected, 81 houses have been confirmed to be completely destroyed with more than 40 per cent of the structure burnt while the other 81 houses have been categorised as partially destroyed.
He also said that 57 houses were also burnt but did not suffer any structural damage while the remaining 218 houses were found to be unaffected by the incident.
