FT Ministry ready to work with others to address KL flash floods

The Federal Territories Ministry is ready to work with other ministries and government agencies including the Environmental Crimes Unit to address flash floods in Kuala Lumpur, said its Minister Tan Sri Annuar Musa.

“We will work with all ministries but I say we should not be reactionary.

“Whenever there was flooding, then all kinds of publicity came out as if the problem has been resolved, and then back to square one. We have to look deeper than that,” he said at a press conference after attending the Bukit Kiara Public Park Beautification programme here yesterday.

The Environmental Crimes Unit, which will be launched today, is supervised by the Environment and Water Ministry, in collaboration with the Defence Ministry and the Home Ministry.

Commenting on the initial report of the flash floods in the Klang Valley on Thursday, that sediment-clogged drains around Kuala Lumpur was identified as one of the causes, Annuar said that it was a fact seen by all parties.

Hence, he said efficiency and supervision levels at construction sites around Kuala Lumpur will be increased to prevent the occurrence of clogged drains due to sedimentation.

“That (clogged drain) is a fact that everyone can see. When it comes to enforcement at the construction sites, DBKL has been very strict, but there is no authority that can control all human actions related to garbage disposal, clogged drains and so on.

“We will further improve our efficiency. We also understand that Kuala Lumpur now has too many construction works ongoing,” he said.

In the meantime, Annuar said that there were also views that the cause of the flood was related to rapid runoff water due to too many development areas.

He said that apart from obtaining a briefing on the operations of Smart Tunnel, his ministry is also considering other suggestions such as building another water or flood retention pond as well as the application of an early warning system by using available technology, to address the problems.

-- BERNAMA