SHAH ALAM, Oct 1 – Subang Jaya City Council’s (MBSJ) Disaster Relief Operations Strategic Plan will be updated to include emergency response measures for gas pipeline explosions.
This is following the Putra Heights blast on April 1, its mayor Datuk Amirul Azizan Abd Rahim was quoted as saying by The Star.
“We never expected such a disaster. But the lesson is clear; we must be prepared for scenarios beyond floods and landslides, the two main risks already covered,” he said.
The city council recently held its first gas explosion emergency and evacuation drill in SS19, in collaboration with Petronas Gas Bhd and supported by the police, Fire and Rescue Department, district officials, and community groups.
The existing MBSJ disaster relief guide, published after the December 2021 floods, outlines flood- and landslide-prone areas, evacuation centres, routes and control posts.
“With gas explosions now identified as a new risk, we will make improvements and amendments,” Amirul Azizan said, while acknowledging the challenges faced in SS19, a dense residential area with only two main entry and exit points.
He added that MBSJ will continue efforts to raise disaster preparedness awareness among residents.
About 50 community leaders and neighbourhood representatives took part in the drill.
The April 1 explosion and subsequent fire in Putra Heights destroyed 81 houses nearby, damaged another 81, affected but didn’t burn 57, and left the remaining 218 homes unaffected.
