Water from a stream on the hilly area at Paya Terubong has been identified as among the causes of the landslide there last Friday, according to the Mineral and Geoscience Department.
The department’s director for Perlis, Kedah and Penang, Azhari Ahmad said the finding was made based on its inspection and monitoring since yesterday.
"The Minerals and Geoscience Department team which arrived at the location (of the landslide) yesterday morning conducted an observation and identified several factors that caused the landslide, resulting in all containers on the hill slope to slide down with the earth.
"The main factor that caused the landslide is the water flow from a stream near the slope, and heavy rain since Friday morning, which caused the water to overflow,” he told reporters at the location of the tragedy today.
Azhari said the department had taken immediate measure by diverting the flow of water from the stream elsewhere to avoid worsening the situation, especially during the search and rescue operation.
He added that further inspection conducted at 7.30am today found the water flow on the slope was less, but the department would continue to monitor the situation with the help of equipment from the Special Malaysia Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team (Smart) to ensure the safety of the SAR personnel.
He said based on observation and inspection at the scene, the department found the location of the landslide to be at the concave slope which easily collected water.
"But, we do not rule out the possibility of follow-up landslide in the area due to the soil structure and there is still water flowing that can cause a landslide.
"We have also advised the rescue team to stop operation immediately if it rains, as it could cause another landslide to happen which could be dangerous to them,” he added.
He said the department was currently assisting the rescue team in the SAR operation and did not rule out the possibility of it conducting further investigation to determine the actual cause of the landslide.
"We hope for fine weather and no rain, so that the SAR operation can be continued until all the victims are found,” he said.
Full report
Penang exco Jagdeep Singh Deo requested for a full report on the landslide from the Pulau Pinang Municipal Council (MBPP).
Jagdeep returned to Penang yesterday after representing Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow at the Internet-of-Things Solution World Congress held in Barcelona.
''Hopefully, I will be able to receive a full report regarding the landslide incident from MBPP mayor Yew Tung Seang by tomorrow before I can make any further comments,'' he told reporters today.
Commenting on claims by fellow exco Zairil Khir Johari that not a single construction site in Penang abided by the soil erosion mitigation plan as set out in their project approvals, Jagdeep said stern action would be taken if the allegation was true.
''If this is true, then strict action will be taken against the project developers for failure to comply with the standard operating procedure,'' he added.
The landslide, which occurred at 1.56pm last Friday, has killed four foreign workers and injured three others, with five people still missing and feared to have been buried alive.
The tragedy occurred following heavy rain in the state since Thursday afternoon until noon the following day, causing the landslide at the container and kongsi area at the Bukit Kukus paired road construction site.
Two bodies were recovered on Friday, that of Indonesian national Samsul Asman, 19, and Bangladesh worker Attrul, 35, while the bodies of Myanmar woman Khin Aye Khaing, 33, and Indonesian Bahtiar, 36, were recovered yesterday at 1.30am and 11.55am, respectively.
- Bernama
