Tuesday February 19, 2013

Flashfloods wreak havoc on Damansara-Puchong Highway

<b>Water, water everywhere:</b> Cars are partially submerged in floodwaters at the car park of IOI Mall.

Water, water everywhere: Cars are partially submerged in floodwaters at the car park of IOI Mall.

PETALING JAYA: One motorist felt her car was “floating”. Another person closed her shop for two hours to clean up the mess.

That was the outcome of a mere 30-minute flashflood, which hit two southbound sections of the Damansara-Puchong Highway (LDP), caused by heavy rains and a backflow from monsoon drains feeding into the Klang River.

Shah Rizal Mohamed Fawzi, the head of communications of Litrak, the LDP concessionaire, said the flashfloods hit KM21.36 and 23.50 of the southbound-side of the LDP at 5.22pm yesterday.

It reached 0.8m in height at parts of KM21.36, causing several cars to stall.

“As soon as the downpour began, we deployed our Emergency Response Teams to monitor the affected areas and to help out in any emergency events,” said Shah Rizal.

The basement floors of IOI Mall Puchong, opposite the affected section, were flooded too.

The scene along the southboundside of the LDP on Monday.

Several shops at the entrance had to close briefly.

It was a frightening 20 minutes for motorist Dr Choong Bee Li who found her car “floating” in fast-rising floodwaters at Km21.36.

“I was panicking. I did not know what to do.

“The car was floating' and I was afraid I would end up hitting someone,” said Dr Choong, who was caught in a jam as she was exiting the nearby Binary College.

Luckily, a passer-by in a van saw her plight and helped to move her car to the side of the road.

“I just had this car repaired and serviced back in Penang before coming to Kuala Lumpur,” Dr Choong lamented.

<b>Massive clean-up:</b> Workers at a fast-food joint near IOI Mall, Puchong cleaning up the mess caused by the flashfloods.

Massive clean-up: Workers at a fast-food joint near IOI Mall, Puchong cleaning up the mess caused by the flashfloods.

A supervisor of a fast-food joint in IOI Mall Puchong, Laila Mohd Daud, said the waters began flowing in at 5.30pm.

She closed the outlet for two hours to deal with the mess.

At another nearby fast-food joint, barefoot staff began mopping up the dirt.

Jess Lee, who works at an organic food store in the mall, said it was fortunate that most of its stock were placed on high shelves.

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Tuesday February 19, 2013

Flashfloods wreak havoc on Daman­sara-Puchong Highway

Flashfloods wreak havoc on Damansara-Puchong Highway