Penang has directed both city councils to consider pausing hillside construction during the monsoon season so that safety inspections and urgent mitigation works take priority. Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said the Penang Island City Council (MBPP) and Seberang Prai City Council (MBSP) should instruct projects now running to watch site conditions closely amid unpredictable weather and heavy rain, the New Straits Times reported.
“Perhaps they can pause construction work and focus on monitoring and, where necessary, carrying out immediate mitigation measures,” he said after inspecting the landslide site in Taman Seri Rambai, Paya Terubong.
Sunday’s landslide killed 73-year-old Dr Wong Kar Lin after earth crashed into the back of his house and buried him. Penang has recorded continuous rain since Saturday.
Chow said the pause was needed because conditions could worsen, and developers would then have to take precautions to prevent further incidents. “September, October and November are typically wet months in Penang. This makes close monitoring of hillside developments particularly important during this period,” he said.
MBPP has issued an immediate stop-work order for the landslide site and given the developer seven days to submit a mitigation plan. The state has received reports from MBPP and the Penang Town and Country Planning Department, as well as a draft incident report from the engineering department of MBPP. A full report is expected within one to two days.
Datuk A. Rajendran, the MBPP mayor, told The Star that no further signs of slope instability had been detected after the rain stopped and the developer moved water pipes to a safer location. The case will be investigated by the Occupational Safety and Health Department (DOSH), with the Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) possibly involved, and the probe could take at least three months.
Rajendran said MBPP issued precautionary notices to developers, contractors and construction sites in September, ahead of the inter-monsoon period. October typically records some of the year’s highest rainfall, and continuous rain can saturate soil and weaken slopes even when downpours are not heavy, he said.
Residents of six nearby houses were asked to evacuate as a precaution. Rajendran said their return would be decided in consultation with the investigating authorities, while relocation arrangements are handled by the district and land office.
Residents had previously raised concerns about the slope through a WhatsApp group with the council. Rajendran said the complaints were passed to the developer, which complied with instructions to improve safety at the site. He added that the affected area was small compared with earlier major landslides involving larger slopes.
A separate landslide in Tanjung Bungah, which damaged two cars, was not caused by construction work but by an existing slope that had deteriorated over time, he said.
