Soil nailing specialist tells state commission of inquiry into Tanjung Bungah landslide tragedy in October that excavation work had resulted in soil movement.
Soil Mechanic Sdn Bhd director Cheah Wing How said his team had completed soil nailing and granite works at the site in early June last year, for a small section of the slope at the site, and subsequently left.
However, Cheah, who has 20 years of work experience in soil nailing, said they were informed in the middle of June that their granite wall had cracked.
He said his team also saw pile cap excavation activity in progress at the site, near the slope they had worked on.
“The excavation had taken place quite near to our slope. We think proper maintenance was not done. When the excavation was done, there was soil movement.
“Also, the granite wall started to crack. In my opinion, this is the cause of the slope failure at the section,” he said in the first day of the SCI on the incident.
According to Cheah, soil nailing is a construction remedial measure either to treat unstable natural soil slopes or as a construction technique that allows the safe over-steepening of new or existing soil slopes.
Cheah then stated they returned to the site to carry out larger scale soil nailing works, but had only started doing work for 11 days before the landslide occurred on Oct 21.
“Before I could move further, the collapse happened. I just started my site work 11 days for the other section of the slope,” he said.
Cheah, who will resume his testimony tomorrow, was the second witness to testify in the inquiry. The first witness was Chuah Ai Yee, a project manager with Taman Seri Bunga Sdn Bhd.
Drone footage
Eight short video clips taken by the Penang Island City Council (MBPP) were also screened during the inquiry.
The clips, taken using a drone, were captured just days after the landslide occurred, as the council sought to ascertain whether the soil was wet or dry, and if more landslides would occur.
There will also be a site visit in Tanjung Bungah on Friday, which will take place at 9.30am.
The SCI is chaired by former Bar Council chairman Yeo Yang Poh, with geotechnical expert Gue See Sew and forensic geotechnical engineer from Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Prof Ramli Nasir, making up the rest of the panel.
The SCI has fixed subsequent hearing dates for Feb 8 to 11, March 24 to 28 and April 18 to 25.
Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng had previously said the SCI will follow the same format as those set up for the Menara Umno, Jalan Macalister building antennae collapse and the Second Penang Bridge ramp collapse in 2013, that claimed the lives of three people.
The Tanjung Bungah inquiry has recognised the victim count as 11, comprising one Malaysian, four Bangladeshis, three Myanmars, two Indonesians, and one Pakistani.
Guan Eng announces Tanjung Bungah landslide SCI
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