Dozens of houses and business premises in the Pandamaran industrial area in Port Klang were badly damaged in a freak storm at about 2pm today.

The 30-minute storm and heavy rains had the residents in Pandamaran Jaya, along the Banting Road and Jalan Besar Pandamaran, worried as it caused trees to be uprooted and poles to fall.

A Bernama survey at the Perbadanan Kemajuan Negeri Selangor (PKNS) flats in Pandamaran Jaya, found that about 72 houses were affected by the storm.

 

The residents' association chairman, R Sivabalan, 41, said within three minutes, the strong winds blew off the roofs of five blocks of apartments, causing major leakages.

 

He said the situation has made it difficult for the Indian residents to celebrate Deepavali tomorrow.

 

"The affected residents complained that their homes suffered damage and leaks, affecting their Deepavali celebrations. This is the first time this has happened and we hope the authorities will repair the damage as soon as possible," he told reporters.

 

Discussions with residents

Meanwhile, Klang member of Parliament Charles Santiago, when met by reporters, said he would hold a discussion with the residents of the flats on the matter.

 

He said the affected families may be asked to move to the nearby community hall so that repair work could be done on Thursday.

 

Klang Selatan District Police Chief ACP Kamarulzaman Mamat said police checks in the affected areas in Kunci Air Jalan Banting, Pandamaran, found several trees had been uprooted and roofs blown off by the storm.

 

He also said several boats at the nearby jetty also sank during the incident "The storm also caused electricity supply to be cut off and Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) has been contacted.

So far, three police reports have been made but there were no injuries or deaths reported," he said when contacted.

 

- Bernama