Opening of mall on hold
MALACCA: The Dec 17 grand opening of the AEON Jusco outlet in Bachang, the largest in the country, has been called off pending the approval from the authorities probing Monday’s deadly blast, said state public works and utilities committee chairman Datuk Gan Tian Loo.
However, it is learnt that with Christmas just round the corner, the shopping mall operator is keen to start business on Dec 21 but would not be able to operate the food court that was damaged in the blast.
Gan advised AEON Jusco to wait for the report before opening the outlet because despite engineers saying that the main structure of the building is safe, the explosion had caused extensive damage to the interior of the food court.
The explosion occurred at the food court section on the ground floor of the three-storey complex just before 1pm on Monday as workers and tenants were busy making final preparations for Thursday’s grand opening.
The force of the blast caused a 2m-wide hole in the building wall, showering glass and debris over a 25m radius and caused a small fire.
Tiau See Peing, 25, a supervisor from Batu Pahat of the Old Town White Coffee outlet, was killed by flying debris while 20 others are being treated at the Malacca Hospital of which six are critical, eight seriously injured while six others received outpatient treatment.
State Women Affairs, Family Development and Health committee chairman Datuk Norpipah Abdol said the state presented aid of between RM2,000 to RM5,000 to the blast victims and RM5,000 to Tiau’s family.
A joint probe by the Fire and Rescue Services Department, Malay-sian Energy Commission, and the Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) will focus on the possibility of gas leakage and human error for the blast.
However, investigations can only proceed after the centralised gas piping system in the building is purged of trapped gas to prevent a second blast.
DOSH deputy operations director Mohtar Musri said the section of the food court affected by the explosion was still deemed unsafe as there was a danger that loose ceiling panels could collapse in the event of a second explosion.
A search and rescue operation was mounted early yesterday morning for three people — two locals and a foreigner — whose identification documents were found in the rubble. They were not among those rescued.
State fire and rescue department director Nik Zulkifli Ibrahim said the authorities were tracing the whereabouts of local workers Mahusin Jusoh and Rominor Chik and foreign worker Mominul Islam.
Earlier, Malacca Governor Tun Mohd Khalil Yaakob visited the injured blast victims at the Malacca Hospital and the blast scene to see the extent of damage caused by the explosion.
By MARTIN CARVALHO and CHEN PELF YEEN
Dipetik dari Star Online 16 Disember 2009
MALACCA: The Dec 17 grand opening of the AEON Jusco outlet in Bachang, the largest in the country, has been called off pending the approval from the authorities probing Monday’s deadly blast, said state public works and utilities committee chairman Datuk Gan Tian Loo.
However, it is learnt that with Christmas just round the corner, the shopping mall operator is keen to start business on Dec 21 but would not be able to operate the food court that was damaged in the blast.
Gan advised AEON Jusco to wait for the report before opening the outlet because despite engineers saying that the main structure of the building is safe, the explosion had caused extensive damage to the interior of the food court.
The explosion occurred at the food court section on the ground floor of the three-storey complex just before 1pm on Monday as workers and tenants were busy making final preparations for Thursday’s grand opening.
The force of the blast caused a 2m-wide hole in the building wall, showering glass and debris over a 25m radius and caused a small fire.
Tiau See Peing, 25, a supervisor from Batu Pahat of the Old Town White Coffee outlet, was killed by flying debris while 20 others are being treated at the Malacca Hospital of which six are critical, eight seriously injured while six others received outpatient treatment.
State Women Affairs, Family Development and Health committee chairman Datuk Norpipah Abdol said the state presented aid of between RM2,000 to RM5,000 to the blast victims and RM5,000 to Tiau’s family.
A joint probe by the Fire and Rescue Services Department, Malay-sian Energy Commission, and the Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) will focus on the possibility of gas leakage and human error for the blast.
However, investigations can only proceed after the centralised gas piping system in the building is purged of trapped gas to prevent a second blast.
DOSH deputy operations director Mohtar Musri said the section of the food court affected by the explosion was still deemed unsafe as there was a danger that loose ceiling panels could collapse in the event of a second explosion.
A search and rescue operation was mounted early yesterday morning for three people — two locals and a foreigner — whose identification documents were found in the rubble. They were not among those rescued.
State fire and rescue department director Nik Zulkifli Ibrahim said the authorities were tracing the whereabouts of local workers Mahusin Jusoh and Rominor Chik and foreign worker Mominul Islam.
Earlier, Malacca Governor Tun Mohd Khalil Yaakob visited the injured blast victims at the Malacca Hospital and the blast scene to see the extent of damage caused by the explosion.
By MARTIN CARVALHO and CHEN PELF YEEN
Dipetik dari Star Online 16 Disember 2009
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