By Nancy Nais
KUCHING, Mar 1: The Fire and Rescue Department (Bomba) has started building a new house for Tchee Foh Hin, whose son Kiam Jong was killed in the CityOne mall explosion last December.
The project at Lorong 10A Stampin Resettlement, estimated to complete in 45 days, started on Feb 15. Six firemen from Tabuan Jaya, Padungan, Petra Jaya and Batu Lintang stations have turned `builders’ to get the task done on a voluntary basis.
State Bomba assistant director (Operations) Tiong Ling Hii said the department had been entrusted to build the house under ‘Projek Pembinaan Rumah Khidmat Bakti Bomba’.
“This is a joint cooperation between the state and federal governments. The 430 square metres land was given by the state, while the funds for building materials came from Stampin MP Chong Chieng Jen’s MP allocation,” said Tiong.
The overall estimated cost to construct the concrete house with three bedrooms, living room, toilet, bathroom, kitchen and dining area is about RM90,000.
Members of the public also chipped in to provide materials for the firemen to build the house.
Tiong added that although Bomba’s completion target is March 31 and the firemen were working on it every day, everything was still subject to weather condition.
The 66-year-old Tchee has been living in a wooden house at Stampin Baru, which was built on land belonging to his brother, for the past 25 years. It was in such a dilapidated condition that it prompted state fire chief Khirudin Drahman to declare it unfit for living due to the hazardous condition. — DayakDaily
