Selangor Police Chief Datuk Hussein Omar Khan at the press conference on the Putra Heights gas pipeline fire. — Picture by Choo Choy May
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By Soo Wern Jun
Friday, 04 Apr 2025 5:14 PM MYT
PETALING JAYA, Apr 4 — Selangor Police Chief Datuk Hussein Omar Khan confirmed today that preliminary investigations indicated that earthworks were done just 30 metres away from the Putra Heights explosion site.
He said, however, the police need around two more weeks to investigate if the earthworks had triggered the explosion from the gas pipeline.
“For now, the respective agencies are conducting stabilisation works on the ground before we can dig the ground to conduct further investigations.
“We need some time to verify if the earthworks carried out by the contractor had triggered the explosion,” Hussein told a press conference at the Taman Putra Harmoni command centre here in Putra Heights.
According to Hussein, due to the scale of the blast, the landscape of the area has changed significantly.
He said has ground has become unstable, hence authorities are not able to carry out immediate excavation for a detailed investigation.
Based on the preliminary findings, he said the earthworks were carry out for the purpose of replacing an existing sewage pipe located approximately 30 metres from the point of the explosion.
“We are able to confirm that earthworks had stopped on March 30.
“Investigations have also identified that there were two machines used for the earthworks carried out — a backhoe and an excavator.
“The excavator that was left on site is now buried in the ground after the explosion,” Hussein added.
Since the investigations began on the second day after the gas pipeline explosion, 56 individuals have been identified as witnesses, including victims.
“One key witness is a security guard who was on duty at the time of the incident and sustained injuries.
“His testimony is being reviewed as part of the investigation,” said Hussein reiterating that they need more time to stabilise the ground before the next phase of the investigation can begin.
Asked if the investigation report will be made public, Hussein said the Selangor state government will make the decision later.
“We definitely announce the findings.
“But now we are asking for two weeks to come out with preliminary investigation report and the following two weeks, a full report.
“That’s our estimation through the Road and Transport Department technical committee chief,” he said.
When asked if Petronas was aware of the gas pipeline leakage, Hussein said Petronas did not receive any reports on any leakage.
“So police will look at the report from Petronas station.
“This pipeline is from Kerteh, Terengganu and goes through Segamat (Johor), the south and goes directly to the north up until Perlis and then Thailand.
“This pipeline is 30 years old, and this has never happened (explosion). This is the third incident, it has happened in Sabah and Sarawak but those were caused by natural causes (earthquake).
“So there many things that we need to investigate, to come to a conclusion,” said Hussein, adding that Petronas has ongoing maintenance done to the entire stretch of the pipeline.
He also said that investigations are also ongoing to determine if the affected land is part of Petronas reserve land.
Residents have been displaced following a blast caused by a leak in a Petronas gas pipeline here in Putra Heights.
As of yesterday, the Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari reportedly said that 1,254 people have been affected by the disaster, with 308 families having registered for assistance with the Community Welfare Department (JKM).
Currently, 157 families (630 victims) remain housed in two temporary shelters.
The disaster has caused significant damage to homes, with 87 properties destroyed and deemed beyond repair.
Another 148 homes were damaged but are still repairable.
