BACK in October 2000, a major sinkhole formed below the Oran camp in Chuping here and swallowed seven buildings of the Royal Army Engineers Regiment Camp.
KANGAR: BACK in October 2000, a major sinkhole formed below the Oran camp in Chuping here and swallowed seven buildings of the Royal Army Engineers Regiment Camp.
The incident led to half of the 14ha-camp to be declared a restricted zone.
Nearly two decades later, the past has returned to haunt the small town of Chuping.
This follows a study conducted by the Mineral and Geoscience Department (Kedah/Perlis) which found that the land there was not suitable for development due to an underground river.
It warned that part of the land where SK Chuping is on, along with several villages nearby, could collapse due to running water.
Chuping assemblyman Asmaiza Ahmad said the matter came to light last year when they wanted to build a mosque but were told by the department that the area was not suitable.
She said the department had outlined the critical areas, which included the school and villages, as well as those less critical.
“The department has alerted the school and villages. As their elected representative, I have met them over the matter.
“I understand that many had built their houses there and and have nowhere to go. We will never know when disaster will strike.
“Our main concern is the safety of everyone in the area,” she told the New Straits Times yesterday.
Asmaiza said she would continue to engage the villagers.
She advised the villagers to be on alert, stressing that if things worsened they would have to evacuate their homes.
Perlis Education Committee chairman Rozieana Ahmad, who is also Pauh assemblyman, said the state executive council had on numerous occasions discussed the relocation of the school.
She said the school, however, had asked for a postponement so that its Year Six pupils could sit their UPSR examination.
She said while the department’s study showed the area was unsafe, a study by the state Public Works Department found the school structure was safe.
“A portion of the school field has been marked as a red zone and we have cordoned off the area.
“We are in constant contact with the state Education Department and the Education Ministry is aware of the school’s safety concerns.
“The authorities have decided to install a device, to be manned by trained teachers, to monitor structural movement in the area. This will be done soon to allay the fears of 300 people in the school.”
Rozieana said the initial plan was to move the students to the nearby SMK Mata Ayer but the authorities realised it could be a huge challenge due to the different needs of primary and secondary schools.
NEW STRAITS TIMES ONLINE
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