Kuantan Road, Penang residents live in fear of falling debris from construction site

PENANG (Dec 19): Residents living along Kuantan Road here constantly have to look up when they go out for they are not sure what may just fall on them.

This is because things building materials such as nails, bolts, nuts, plywood, iron rods, cement debris and rocks have fallen on their properties from a construction site nearby.

“When there is strong wind, it sounds like it is raining stones,” resident Ricky Teh, 53, told The Star in a report.

He said loud bangs can be heard when heavy material fall on the roof of his home.

“We are worried when it rains. That is the time when we will realise if whatever had fallen on our roof cracked it,” Teh revealed.

He also said that some of his neighbours’ cars were “splattered with wet concrete, damaging the paintwork”.

In an effort to protect their vehicles, many have resorted to covering them with plastic sheets.

Teh also said that the walls of some of the homes suffered cracks owing to the development going on close behind.

According to the same report, the developer of the construction “has been responsible and paid for all the repairs” but Teh pondered “but how many times do we have to go through this?”

“How many times do we have to repair our house? We have to work. We don’t have time to keep repairing the roof,” said another resident Hamid Sultan Abdul Jabbar, 58.

“Cars have been damaged but nobody has died yet. Do we wait for that to happen before they improve on safety?” Povinder Singh, 61, told the daily.

A representative from the developer assured that they will look into the problems faced by residents and improve safety measures.

Meanwhile, Datuk Keramat state assemblyman Jagdeep Singh Deo told residents involved to report to Penang Island City Council if falling objects continue to damage their homes and properties.