Another sinkhole appears at Kuala Lumpur’s Jalan Masjid India where tourist went missing

KUALA LUMPUR - Just over two weeks after the authorities revealed the true cause of 2024’s Jalan Masjid India sinkhole, another ground settlement has struck the same neighbourhood, this time along Jalan Bonus, raising fresh questions about the stability of ageing underground infrastructure in the city centre.

In a statement, Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) said the latest sinkhole appeared in front of the Bombay Jewellery outlet on Nov 10 at 8.40 am.

Teams from DBKL, Air Selangor, Indah Water Konsortium and the Dang Wangi district police were on site to carry out investigations.

For safety reasons, Jalan Masjid India has been temporarily closed to all vehicles, from Lorong Masjid India 4 (next to the mosque) up to the affected stretch.

DBKL stressed that public safety is its top priority. Monitoring and technical assessments are ongoing, and further updates will be issued in due course.

On Oct 24, the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Federal Territories), Dr Zaliha Mustafa, told the Dewan Rakyat that

investigations by a special task force

revealed that the collapse was caused by the failure of a corroded sewer pipe structure, worsened by soil instability, and not the presence of limestone, as initially feared.

Dr Zaliha said the site sits on the Kenny Hills Formation underlain by schist rock, while limestone lies much deeper, between 60m and 70m below ground level. She explained that the incident cannot be directly attributed to limestone

She added that the task force had presented its full findings to the Cabinet in August, while DBKL is preparing a public report to be released by the end of 2025.

In response to increasing public concern, DBKL has begun geotechnical studies along key routes in the Golden Triangle to determine soil profiles and stability.

The studies use borehole resistivity, ground penetrating radar, light detection and ranging – or Lidar – and InSAR technology. Early findings show no locations currently classified as high-risk.

Indian tourist G. Vijayalakshmi, 48, went missing after she

fell into an 8m-deep sinkhole

that suddenly opened beneath her feet on the morning of Aug 23, 2024. THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK