Roof of apartment block in Sri Desa collapses, doctor cheated death

KUALA LUMPUR - A doctor cheated death when the roof of an apartment block in Sri Desa, Jalan Kelang Lama, collapsed last night.

Tremors following the collapse of the four-storey apartment building’s roof structure coud be felt in a nearby building located about 70 metres away.

R. Mercy, 21, a medical assistant at a clinic located in Block B, which is located about 70 metres from the site of the collapsed roof in Block A, was so loud that it sounded like a thunder and tremor resembling an earthquake.

"I was on duty and only realised about the incident when three victims involved in the incident came to the clinic for treatment,” she told Bernama when met at the location.

Mercy said though she was in a state of panic, she quickly went out to get in touch with the doctor who was on duty.

Meanwhile, Dr J. Louis, 32, who works in the same clinic said he cheated death when a large rock fell on his car while he was trying to move his car which was parked directly below the location of the incident.

"I was trying to remove my car and was busy checking my damaged side mirror when a large stone came crushing close to the car. I was lucky to have avoided and ran for my life but my car was damaged,” he said.

Dr Louis said his car suffered about 50 percent damage and could not start. He added that the car was still at the location and waiting for a tow truck to send it to a workshop.

K. Veerthasalam, 55, one of the victims, said he was not in his premises but never expected such an incident to happen because there have been no damage to the structure reported before.

"However, it was fortunate that the incident happened at night because if it was during peak hours, I dare not imagine what would have happened because the place would have been a hive of activities during day time,” he said.

Veerthasalam also expressed concern about the status of the building when it rains because tenants cannot live in because there is no roof over their heads.

Meanwhile, a visit to the location by Bernama found the area of Blok A in Sri Desa was badly damaged and the police were stationed at the site to control the situation.

The main route to the building, awnings, aircond compressors and street lights were damaged in the incident. - BERNAMA