Leaking pipes ruled out as cause
23/03/2007 NST

PUTRAJAYA: The engineers studying the cause of the Precinct 9 landslide have tentatively ruled out leaking pipes as part of the cause.

Engineers from Putrajaya Holdings, the city’s master developer, and Kumpulan Ikram Sdn Bhd — who did not want to be identified — said they had tested for chlorine in the soil but found none.

"At the moment, this rules out the theory that there were leaks from the reservoir or from pipes from the reservoir down the hillside. The most likely cause of the wet soil was the heavy rain over the past few days," said an engineer at the site.

Works Minister Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu said that according to initial findings by the engineering teams the soil on the hills had stabilised.

"We do not expect any further landslides there but PWD and Ikram are keeping a close watch. We have yet to find the actual cause of the landslide," he said.
Samy Vellu also said that during a routine inspection of the area last July, PWD officers had discovered a leaking water tank atop a nearby hill.

"We notified Putrajaya Holdings Sdn Bhd as PWD has no jurisdiction over the area. But no remedial action has been undertaken by them," he said at the sales launch of the Matahari luxury super condominiums yesterday.

Putrajaya Holdings chief executive officer Azlan Karim said terracing the slope seemed sufficient when the apartments were built and until now there had been no problem.