Gas pipeline blaze victims recount earthquake-like tremors

Monday 07 Apr 2025

01 Apr 2025, 01:31 pm

SUBANG JAYA (April 1): The tremor felt like an earthquake. That was what residents nearby said they felt when a gas pipeline burst, causing a massive fire at Jalan Putra Harmoni, Putra Heights, Subang Jaya, Selangor on Tuesday morning.

A victim, 17-year-old Tan Jia Shin, said that she, her heavily pregnant mother, father and two siblings were in the house when they felt a strong tremor at about 8am, when the incident occurred.

"We quickly rushed out and saw the fire raging, and our home was just two lanes away from the site of the incident.

"At that time, our only thoughts were our pregnant mother's safety. We all rushed out of the house without taking anything, not even the car, with the help of firefighters,” she said when met by Bernama.

Another victim, 42-year-old Lee Weng Ken, who suffered burns to his left leg, said he was shocked when the ceiling of his house collapsed and crushed his vehicle parked in the compound of the house at about 8.10am.

"I rushed out of my house but fell and suffered burns due to the heat from the blaze near my house,” he said.

Meanwhile, another victim, who only wanted to be known as Andy, 52, said his house was located about 100 metres from the site of the inferno.

He said he and his two children, aged 14 and 18, felt a tremor and went out and saw the raging fire.

"I could only take the car out. My 18-year-old daughter injured her foot when she fell while climbing the fence due to the heat.

"Everything around the house has melted (because the flames were so hot), making it difficult for us to get out of the house,” he said.

A Bernama survey found that victims who suffered minor injuries were placed at the Sri Maha Kaliamman temple in Subang Jaya, to receive treatment from Ministry of Health personnel.

As of 11am, 30 people have received early treatment, while some have been sent to hospitals in Serdang, Putrajaya and Cyberjaya for further treatment.

Meanwhile, Aidil Ghafar, a former journalist with a television company, said he felt the tremor at 8.20am.

"When I opened the door, I smelt gas and felt the heat of the fire,” he said, adding that his house was located about 200 metres from the scene of the fire.

He claimed that over the past two days, there had been digging works carried out at a location near his house, including an area believed to be where the gas pipeline was located.

"I believe that the digging works could be one of the cause of the fire,” he said, adding that he has been staying at Jalan Putra Harmoni 1/3 for the past 10 years.