The latest landslide tragedy which claimed eight lives in Taman Hillview, Kuala Lumpur, highlights the need for the government to set up an agency to look into causes of natural disasters, said a prominent geologist today.

A senior fellow of the Institute for Environment and Development Prof Ibrahim Komoo said the body should specifically be set up to investigate why natural disasters such as landslides, floods and soil erosions occur.

"So far, no agency has been looking into the (causes of the landslides). When a tragedy occurs, various agencies help out but...none have the main objective of looking at the causes of the landslide, he said when contacted.

"There is the Ampang Jaya City Council (MPAJ) but it is uncertain whether they have sufficient resources to do this," added the geologist who is involved in a separate study of the soil conditions around the Highland Towers complex which collapsed in 1993, killing 48 people.

Yesterday's landslide destroyed the home of Affin Bank chairperson Ismail Omar which was located at the lower slopes of Bukit Antarabangsa in Ampang. Eight people, including two domestic workers, were killed.

The former armed forces chief's wife Azizah Abdul Aziz, 57, son-in law Shamsul Azahar Shafie, 35, son Ahmad Ijaz, 37 and his wife Zaradino Zaini together with their children Johan, one and Zurian Aishah, five, perished in the pre-dawn incident.

Different risk levels

Meanwhile, Ibrahim said the entire area in the vicinity has proven to be within the high risk bracket after the occurrence of six to seven landslides in the past decade.

"However, the risk is not the same for all areas. There are different kinds of topography such as slopes, planes, or areas at the top of the hill," he explained when contacted.

The geologist stressed that a detailed investigation over a time period of three to six months should be done on the area to map out the risk assessment of particular sections.

"If this is done, we can see the percentage of area which is high risk or moderate risk. We can also see where the areas with relatively low risk are located," he said.

Because of the differences in risk levels, the geologist said it was difficult for the government to authorise a full evacuation of the area.

"There are also other issues to consider like whether the residents have another place to go to or how long they need to go for," he said.

Ibrahim said a two week evacuation period is not sufficient for a proper study and if people are asked to stay away for months, they may not agree if they feel their houses are not directly in danger.

Asked why a study was not conducted on the area after the Highland Towers tragedy, Ibrahim said he was "surprised" as well that a complete assessment had not been made but attributed it to the lack of a consistent effort to press for such action.

Foundation unsuitable

Asked whether the collapse of these buildings was related to shortcomings in their foundations, Ibrahim conceded that construction requirements were less stringent when development first started on the hill area.

"The houses in the area have been there for 20 or 25 years. During that time, the requirements were not so stringent.

"Possible slope failure was not accounted for and therefore, piling work done at that time is not suitable to take lateral load, although they are good for vertical load," he explained.

However, he said the building requirements have been tightened up since the Highland Towers incident, to accommodate slope and soil conditions.

Meanwhile, a Bernama report said the government has appointed the Federal Disaster Relief Management Committee to make immediate safety assessments in landslip potential areas.

Information Minister Khalil Yaakob said the committee would call on experts to recommend measures to be taken in high risk areas for the safety of residents in view of the rainy spell.