KUALA LUMPUR: The Works Ministry and the Malaysia Highway Authority (LLM) are carrying out safety reviews, including assessing the implementation of responsibilities at all levels, following the parapet wall slab accident along the ongoing Sungai Besi-Ulu Klang Elevated Expressway (SUKE) construction.
Senior Works Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof, in issuing a warning to all parties involved in the construction, said all quarters must comply with all processes, procedures, specifications and the contract set at the construction site without any compromise.
"The parapet wall slab which fell onto a moving car could have been avoided if all parties involved adhered to the correct work and procedure systems based on the approved guidelines, and must abide by the specifications and contract.
"LLM and the ministry are conducting safety checks and reviewing the implementation of responsibilities at all levels whether in monitoring, quality, design and work methodology," he said in a statement today.
He added that LLM and Projek Lintasan Kota Holdings Sdn Bhd (Prolintas) must review the most appropriate design methods involving structures to minimise risk to the public and employees.
Fadillah also said the monitoring and work methods of consultants and contractors must be re-examined, to ensure standardisation of on-site design and monitoring methods.
He also urged for a comprehensive study to be conducted by experienced experts to achieve the best design which would minimise risks during construction involving traffic routes on existing roads.
Developers and contractors, meanwhile, had been ordered to take action to alleviate the burden and stress faced by the victim of the incident and her family, he added.
"LLM and Prolintas have been told to reassess the design and construction involving risks to the public before work on the SUKE and the Damansara-Shah Alam Highway can continue.
"The government will refer to consultants from the Board of Engineers Malaysia if elements of negligence in terms of site design and monitoring are found.
"Strict action will be taken against negligent individuals during the construction," he added.
Fadillah expressed regret over the incident and stressed that his ministry would not compromise on public safety.
Meanwhile, The Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) has issued an immediate stop-work order on the installation of parapet walls at the SUKE project.
Deputy Human Resource Minister Awang Hashim in a statement said the order was to allow a comprehensive investigation to be conducted by DOSH on the cause of the incident.
He said it was also to determine whether there were any violations of the legal requirements under the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994.
"According to the act, it is the responsibility of the employer to ensure safety, healthy and welfare of all workers or the public," he said.
Awang, who is also the chairman of the National Council For Occupational Safety and Health, said employers have full control on activities at the workplace, to analyse risk and have effective risk control in place before workers could carry out any activity.
"This is to reduce risks to workers and the people, as well as to prevent accidents from taking place," he said.
Apart from that, Awang said the Occupational Safety and Health in Construction Industry (Management) 2017 (OSHCIM) guidelines also required all interested parties including clients, designers and contractors to play their roles and carry out their respective responsibilities at the workplace as early as the design stage to project construction.
"The ministry views seriously each accident and disease coming from occupational activities including cases involving members of the public in the construction sector," he said.
On Satursday, a one-sq metre concrete slab from a construction site of SUKE fell on a Proton Saga BLM at the Middle Ring Road 2 at 5.45pm.
The driver, a 25-year-old woman, sustained injuries on her left arm and was sent to the Hospital Canselor Tuanku Muhriz Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia for treatment.