Search for KL sinkhole victim, 48, continues on its 3rd day

The search for the 48-year-old Indian tourist who fell into the eight-metre deep sinkhole in Kuala Lumpur (KL) enters its third day.

According to The Star, the area around the sinkhole at Jalan Masjid was relatively quiet.

The Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim also instructed the City Hall on Aug. 25 to "express its condolences to the family of this young mother who has yet to be found. We express our sympathies."

Still ongoing

On Aug. 23, the woman fell into an eight-metre deep sinkhole in KL after a section of the sidewalk caved in at Jalan Masjid.

The street is a popular pedestrian street located near KL's city centre.

The woman was walking in front of the Malayan Mansion at 8:20am when the ground suddenly collapsed, causing her to fall into the sinkhole.

Malaysian media reported that a search and rescue operation is underway for the woman, who is believed to be an Indian national.

Pictures shared to social media platform X (formerly Twitter) showed the sinkhole which opened up on the pavement next to the Wisma Melayu building.

Rescuers were seen lowering ladders and descending into its depths.

Sinkhole in KL pic.twitter.com/3RJua7obzW

— @ (@anthraxxx781) August 23, 2024

KL's Fire and Rescue Department was alerted to the incident by a distress call at 8:22am, reported The New Straits Times.

Operations commander Mohd Riduan Akhyar said that upon arrival at the site, rescuers discovered the victim had fallen into a sinkhole following the cave-in, The Star reported.

15 personnel, two fire engines, and two rapid intervention motorcycles were dispatched, Riduan said.

Riduan added that K-9 tracker units and the Special Tactical Operation and Rescue Team of Malaysia, a specialised firefighter unit, were assisting at the scene.

On Aug. 24, after 17 hours of searching for the woman, rescuers could only find a pair of slippers.

Kuala Lumpur's police chief, Rusdi Mohd Isa said the search had to be suspended at 12:30am on Aug. 24 due to heavy rain and the dark environment complicating rescue efforts.

Free Malaysia Today reported that an excavator and two scuba divers were deployed for the rescue mission.

Firefighters had excavated a 1.5 metre-deep chamber at the site of the sinkhole, which is part of a sewer line that leads to a sewage plant 7km away.

The fire and rescue department said the scuba divers had entered the chamber in the sinkhole to search for the woman.

The slippers were found in the excavated area of the incident.

Challenges the scuba team faced included strong currents, gas and sewage, Rusdi was further quoted as saying.

He added that Malaysia's national sewerage company, Indah Water Konsortium (IWK), would assist in the search by opening up every sewer manhole along the sewer line that ended at the sewage plant.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of IWK, Narendran Maniam, said it was possible for a human body to be carried by the sewer line as it has a diameter of 1.5 metres and is three metres wide at the end.

The woman had been in Malaysia for a two-month holiday and was scheduled to leave the country on Aug. 25.

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Top photos via anthraxxx781/X