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Image: Jabatan Bomba & Penyelamat Malaysia Facebook

A traffic accident happened this morning at about 11am involving a 51 ton lorry carrying concrete tunnel lining segments for the MRT Project. The lorry had to apply its emergency brakes as traffic ahead of it had suddenly stopped.

It swerved a little but could not avoid hitting the vehicle in front. Because of the accident, 12 pieces of the 16 pieces of concrete tunnel lining segments that the lorry was carrying fell onto the road.

The 12 pieces of segments were moved to the side of the road and a crane was then mobilised to lift the segments into a back-up lorry. The lanes leading to the Taman Billion roundabout were reopened to all traffic at 1.30pm once operations to clean up the road completed.

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Image: Jabatan Bomba & Penyelamat Malaysia Facebook

MRT Corp said in a statement that the fallen material did not cause any injury to any person or car. Of course, this does not include the car was that was damaged at the rear by the lorry when it had to brake suddenly. The lorry belongs to a transportation contractor for the MRT Project Underground Works Package Contractor MMC Gamuda KVMRT (T) Sdn Bhd and was transporting tunnel lining segments to the Pudu Launch Shaft.

MRT Corp is investigating the incident and says action will be taken against parties found responsible for the accident. Initial investigations reveal that the driver, who has 23 years of lorry driving experience, had the appropriate driver's license. He had also gone through the induction course for transporting segments which was carried out by MMC Gamuda for all lorry drivers. Rumours that the driver fled the scene are untrue. The driver stayed with the site supervisor throughout the operation to remove the fallen segments.

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Image: Jabatan Bomba & Penyelamat Malaysia Facebook

The location later experienced flash flooding due to extremely heavy rain which began at about 3pm. A number of the New Jersey Barriers (NJB) used to line the worksite were swept onto the middle of the road. Several vehicles were stalled in the floodwaters.

The Emergency Respond Team from IJM Construction Sdn Bhd, the Work Package Contractor for this section of works, were immediately mobilised to remove the floating NJBs and rescue the drivers from their stalled vehicles.

Water receded when the rain stopped at 4.45pm. Work to clean the site of mud is currently on-going.