Homes in danger of slipping away, yet more being planned
03/12/2007 New Straits Times By Arman Ahmad and K. Harinderan

An entire row of abandoned houses built on a slope in Bukit Antarabangsa

KUALA LUMPUR: Captain (R) Hassan Ahmad looks forebodingly at the drain that runs the length of his house -- a corner lot on one of Bukit Antarabangsa's highest slopes.

An eroded slope covered with plastic sheets tarpaulin. — NST pictures by Muahizan Yahya

Captain (R) Hassan Ahmad showing where he had dumped a few tonnes of earth on the slope which was showing signs of erosion. He has been slapped with a fine for his actions. — NST pictures by Muahizan Yahya
The day was sunny and not a puddle of water could be seen in the drain, but Hassan said things were different when there was a downpour.

"The moment it rains, water starts running down the drain in huge torrents," he said with a frown.

The problem is that when it reaches the L-junction located at one corner of his house, the large amount of water cannot flow quickly enough.

The developers never built a basin which could have helped with the water flow.

"This means that it starts overflowing out of the drain and onto the slope next to my house.

"I'm afraid my house might one day go down the slope as well," he said.

Hassan said the soil had already started to erode and since no one was doing anything about it, he got a friend to dump a few tonnes of earth on the slope.

"My friend was doing construction at his house and I asked him to dump the earth here.

"Now, all I need is to get a bulldozer to even the soil out," he said.

With the soil forming a barrier, the water would be forced away from the slope and into the drain.

But Hassan's quick-fix solution was not well received by the local council.

Hassan said about a year earlier, the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council (MPAJ) came over and slapped him with a fine for illegal dumping after he had put soil on the slope to stabilise it.

"I haven't paid the fine and I'm waiting to be taken to court so this issue can be heard," he said.

A check by the New Straits Times revealed at least one eroded slope covered with plastic sheets.

Just a few hundred metres from Hassan's house is an entire row of abandoned houses.

The houses, which never received their certificates of fitness, were built on the slope in the mid-1980s but are believed to have developed cracks.

Despite this, just a few hundred metres away, a developer has begun marking lots along a slope for a project.

Real estate here is expensive, going at RM150 a square foot.

Another resident, Noorzilah Ismail, said a development project near her house has her worried.

She said residents had complained to the Ampang Municipal Council about the potential threat of landslides in the area but "little has been done".

"We are looking for a new house soon to shift from the area."