A large hole opened along Lebuhraya Mayang Pasir in Bayan Baru on Wednesday afternoon, forcing authorities to close the road to traffic (FMT).
Emergency sewer repairs at the site are now targeted for completion by 7 November, weather permitting, the sewerage operator said (The Star).
The depression is about two metres deep and measures roughly 9m by 8m, according to Pantai Jerejak assemblyman Fahmi Zainol, who said it was noticed at about 3.10pm within the Taman Sri Tunas residential area (Sinar Harian).
Indah Water Konsortium said preliminary findings point to a dislocated joint in an underground sewer pipe more than 30 years old. The affected pipe is 300mm in size and sits about 4m below ground.
The company said this is the first incident of its kind reported in the area, with no earlier complaints about sewer defects on record. As at 8pm on Wednesday, it added, the situation was under control and immediate protection measures were in place at the site.
Fahmi said the public works department had confirmed that a leak from an old IWK pipe caused the collapse, and that the sewerage company had acknowledged the pipe was its own. Department and police personnel reached the location soon after the hole was spotted, he said.
Plastic barriers now stand around the hole and across both directions of the carriageway, and the affected stretch is fully closed. Fahmi said no one was hurt and no vehicles were damaged.
Indah Water Konsortium said it is running closed-circuit television inspections and ground-penetrating radar scans across Penang to assess ageing infrastructure and identify stretches that need pipeline upgrading. Periodic planned inspections form part of its risk management approach, it said.
Wednesday’s collapse follows a similar episode in October 2024, when a hole formed along Lebuh Bukit Kecil 3 in Pantai Jerejak after an underground IWK pipe burst. A school bus was left partly trapped in the collapsed section of that road.
Fahmi said repair work by the sewerage company was expected to run between one and two weeks from Wednesday night. Motorists and residents have been advised to stay clear of the cordoned area and to follow instructions from personnel on duty.
