By TAN KARR WEI | Dec 4, 2009

MBPJ takes steps to prevent flash floods

THE Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) is going all out to prevent flash floods at several hot spots caused by clogged drains during the rainy season.

MBPJ public complaints director Tengku Nazaruddin Zainuddin said some of the flood-prone areas include the Assunta and UITM roundabout in Jalan Templer; the junction of Jalan Yong Shook Lin and Jalan Selangor; and the junction of Jalan Utara turning into the Federal Highway.

“We are expecting more rain over the next few weeks so we are taking pro-active steps to prevent flash floods, especially at the roundabouts.

“Most of the flash floods are caused by clogged drains,” he said.

Nazaruddin also advised the public not to throw rubbish into the drains because that was another cause of clogged drains.

Working together with Alam Flora, the council’s Quick Response Team cleared the drains in several flood-prone areas yesterday morning, starting at the Assunta roundabout.

Several enforcement officers were also present to control the traffic while work was being carried out.

Some of the culverts were blocked with silt and it took some effort for Alam Flora workers to clear the blockages with high-pressure pumps.

According to Alam Flora operations support manager Safeeyah Baba, the open drains along main roads were cleaned every day except on Sundays, while the covered drains were cleaned twice a week.

“Drains in housing areas are cleaned once every fortnight but if we get a complaint, we’ll do it immediately,” said Safeeyah.

MBPJ public complaints officer Zey Iskandar Mohd Jalil said the department would have weekly meetings with the various heads of department to make sure that all complaints are attended to within 48 hours.

He said the council would continue to carry out the drain-clearing exercise before each rainy season.