SUNGAI BULOH: The collapsed concrete blocks and cables at the MRT construction site in Kota Damansara have been cut into smaller pieces to facilitate the search for two workers still missing from last night’s incident.
Mass Rapid Transit Corporation Sdn Bhd (MRT) Director of Strategic Communication and Public Relations Amir Mahmood Razak said the blocks were cut into smaller slabs by 8.30am today.
"The 650-tonne blocks have been cut into 14 components. The first chunk was lifted up from the scene at about 10.30am.
“Eight cables have been cut into smaller pieces to make it easier for authorities to lift up the concrete rubble to extract the victims," he said when met at the scene this morning.
The incident occurred at around 8.30pm last night while construction of the parapet was being carried out on the MRT elevated guideway.
Selangor Fire and Rescue Department operations assistant director Mohd Sani Harul said the body of the first victim, identified as Mohammad Elahi Hossain, 27, was pulled out of the collapse
site at 2.34am today.
“His body was sent to the Sungai Buloh hospital for post mortem.
“We are still clearing the debris and we need to depend on heavy machinery to cut through hundreds of tonnes of concrete rubble,” he said.
Meanwhile, Mass Rapid Transit Corporation Sdn Bhd (MRT Corp) in a statement confirmed three of its workers were involved in the incident.
Other two trapped in the rubble were Bangladesh nationals Mohamad Faruk Khan and Mohammad Alauddin Mollik.
Rescue efforts are currently on-going and an emergency response team is on standby at the site.
The corporation’s Project Delivery Partner MMC Gamuda KVMRT (PDP) Sdn Bhd has also commenced investigations to determine the cause of the incident, it said in statement.
“All work along Package V1 where the incident occured has been suspended until further notice. The work package contractor for Package V1 is Syarikat Muhibah Perniagaan dan Pembinaan Sdn Bhd,” the statement said.
Its chief executive officer Datuk Wira Azhar Abdul Hamid, who is currently on site, said MRT Corp and the authorities will make sure that the cause for this accident is determined quickly.
“No effort will be spared in getting to the bottom of this tragic incident. We will also not spare anyone whose actions are found to have caused or contributed to this accident,” he said, again expressing his regret and sorrow for the accident.
Initial investigation revealed that the cause of incident may be localised to this particular span while other spans which have been erected were not affected.
Wira said immediate checks carried out showed that there was no reason for the public to be worried over other spans which have been build.
