By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, April 1: A total of 112 people have been affected by the gas pipeline fire in Putra Heights, Subang Jaya, this morning, with 63 requiring hospitalisation.
According to Bernama, Selangor deputy police chief DCP Mohd Zaini Abu Hassan said that the victims involved were residents of Taman Harmoni and Kampung Kuala Kuala Sungai Baharu.
The 63 victims requiring hospitalisation were transported to Cyberjaya, Serdang, and Putrajaya Hospitals for further treatment, due to burns, respiratory issues, and other injuries.
As for the remaining 49 victims, they received initial treatment at the Sri Maha Kaliamman temple in Subang Jaya.
He said this during a press conference today at the Malaysian Fire and Rescue Department (Boba) and Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM) Special Operations Centre in Kuala Lumpur.
Mohd Zaini also said that two temporary evacuation centres have been set up at the Nurul Iman Mosque and the Putra Heights Mosque to shelter victims.
He confirmed that, as of now, no fatalities have been reported, and investigations into the incident are still ongoing.
Meanwhile, Bomba director-general Datuk Nor Hisham Mohammad said that PETRONAS had shut down the four main valves of the gas pipeline, located in Dengkil, Puchong, Batu Tiga, and Meru, to release the remaining natural gas. This process began at 8.46am today.
He further explained that the distance between the first and fourth valves spans 32 kilometres.
Nor Hisham added that the final valve was closed at 11.48am, and that PETRONAS anticipates that it will take about four hours for the natural gas to be fully released, allowing the fire to subside, and eventually be extinguished.
“Bomba did not face any water shortages during this operation, but our main focus was on releasing the gas to allow the fire to extinguish naturally,” he said.
He explained that by 1.30pm today, the gas pressure in the burning pipeline had dropped to eight per cent, compared with 50 per cent earlier this morning.
He added that they are preparing for the second phase to locate victims who may be trapped inside their homes, as well as assessing the plastic and carbon remnants from the fire, to assist the team in safely entering the area and extinguishing any remaining flames. — DayakDaily
