PETALING JAYA: Cameron Highlands and the Tapah-Cameron Highlands route have been identified as among 31 landslide hotspots by the Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Ministry, says the Mineral and Geoscience Department.
Its director-general Datuk Zamri Ramli said in Cameron Highlands alone, there were 418 landslides from 1961 to 2023.
This made up 6.5% of the total landslides that occurred in the same period at the 31 hotspots, with 6,431 landslides and 602 deaths.
Other hotspots were the Kuala Kubu-Raub route, Temerloh, Kuala Lipis, Seremban-Simpang Pertang, Rembau-Johol and Kuala Lumpur-Karak Highway.
Yesterday morning, a landslide hit Cameron Highlands again, the second case this year.
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Pahang Fire and Rescue Department assistant director (operations) Ismail Abdul Ghani said the department received a distress call at 2.51am yesterday.
So far, two Myanmar nationals have been found dead in the landslide. The search is ongoing for three others.
Only a week before, a landslide on Jan 19 forced a road closure at Jalan Boh Habu C156.
On Jan 21, the Cameron Highlands Public Works Department issued a notice regarding the temporary closure of the road at Section 0.70, connecting Habu to the Boh Tea Estate in both directions.
The closure is planned until Feb 2 but may be subject to change based on ongoing repairs.
Despite getting only 10 yellow alerts for continuous rain between January and Dec 4 last year, Cameron Highlands suffered at least four incidents of landslides in 2023.
At the end of last year, there were two incidents of landslides in Cameron Highlands.
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On Oct 12 last year, a total of 88 Orang Asli from 17 families were forced to evacuate their homes. They took shelter at the community hall in Kampung Sungai Ruil after a landslide.
It was found that the landslide was caused by broken underground pipes and frequent rain, especially at night.
Last July, three families were forced to evacuate their houses in Kampung Juang, Jalan Simpang Pulai-Cameron Highlands following a downpour.
Zamri said mitigation works at locations identified as critical slopes in the country are ongoing, with 37 of the 254 locations having been completed.
He said the final report of the geological disaster mappings together with suggested mitigation measures and early warning systems for debris flows have been submitted to the relevant stakeholders.
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He said this is to enable them to be prepared in the event of a landslide.
Zamri also said that the department’s geological disaster response team is prepared for any eventuality.
“Teams have also been activated in all states and will update rescue teams on the status of any geological disaster,” he said.
He advised those living in sloped areas or locations with a history of landslides to pay attention to their surroundings.
He said they should be aware of small movements on slopes, cracks in the ground, walls, pillars, or roads.
“Contact the Mineral and Geoscience Department or local authorities for further information or assistance,” he said.
