By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, Aug 12: Site supervision must be tightened following damage to an 850-millimetre water pipe during piling works for the Kuching Urban Transportation System (KUTS) project, which disrupted water supply to about 20,000 consumers yesterday (Aug 12).
Minister for Utilities and Telecommunications Dato Sri Julaihi Narawi said lead consultants and engineering consultancy firms must conduct regular site inspections instead of leaving supervision solely to resident or project engineers.
He said closer monitoring was necessary to prevent construction activities from damaging existing utility infrastructure.
“The lead consultant of the engineering consultancy firm and Soil Metro itself must go to the site from time to time.
“Supervision should not simply be left to the resident or respective project engineers. At times, the consultants themselves need to be on site to observe and ensure the works are carried out properly,” he said after inspecting the burst pipe and repair works at Jalan Tun Jugah last night as reported by TVS.
The 850mm pipe was damaged during piling works for the ART project, resulting in a water supply disruption affecting about 20,000 consumers.
Julaihi said the pipe had previously been relocated to a new alignment, but the contractor failed to distinguish between the old and new alignments when carrying out the piling works.
“This shows that greater attention must be given to site supervision to ensure that the works carried out do not affect existing utilities,” he added.
Following the incident, Julaihi said supervision of all utility-related construction works must be strengthened to prevent similar incidents.
He warned that work could be stopped if negligence continued and caused disruptions to consumers.
Meanwhile, Sarawak Water and relevant agencies have been instructed to provide sufficient water tankers to assist residents and consumers affected by the disruption.
Julaihi also called for stronger coordination among contractors, consultants and utility agencies to ensure development projects can proceed without disrupting essential services. — DayakDaily
