MRT Corp denies rumour of car falling into sinkhole
The depression along the Jalan Bukit Bintang stretch has resulted in a road closure that would last until tomorrow morning. — Pic credit MRT Malaysia
KUALA LUMPUR, April 23:
The Jalan Bukit Bintang stretch will remain closed to traffic until 6am tomorrow in order to continue ground compacting works to repair a road depression.
This was after an incident this morning on the stretch between Chulan Square and Menara Worldwide.
According to a statement by the Mass Rapid Transit Corporation Sdn Bhd (MRT Corp), the closure began at 9am today for immediate repair works.
The closure was ordered after MRT Project Underground Works Contractor MMC Gamuda KVMRT (T) Sdn Bhd “detected a slight depression beneath the pedestrian walkway”.
The statement initially said the road would be re-opened at 6pm today. However, in an updated version, the closure has been extended to tomorrow morning.
Netizens, however, went one step ahead, sharing pictures of sinkholes from other incidents and passing them off as the one this morning.
One such photo was of a car that had fallen into a sinkhole.
However, a simple check on the Internet showed that the picture was from a 2012 incident in the province of Qixing, China.
MRT Corp director of strategic communications and public relations Amir Mahmood Razak debunked the rumours, saying in the statement that the depression was not big enough to cause a car to fall into it or damage property.
“During the closure, a traffic contra-flow has been implemented whereby traffic from Bukit Bintang heading to Jalan Tun Razak will be directed onto two lanes on the opposite (Bukit Bintang-bound) side of the road.
“Two remaining lanes will still be available for Bukit Bintang-bound traffic,” the statement read.