Malaysian divers have been entering a sewer in full scuba gear to search for a tourist who fell into a sinkhole while visiting downtown Kuala Lumpur on August 23.
Inside the sewer, the divers have no light as it’s pitch black; they can only rely on their torchlight for vision.
Mr. Zulkhairi, one of the four divers who belongs to the Malaysian Fire and rescue Department, said ‘you don’t want to know what’s [in the sewer]’ as it’s ‘full of garbage and human waste.’ He told media outlets that they must decontaminate immediately following each dive.
According to officials, the tourist is 48-year-old Vijayalaksmi from Kuppam, who was on her way to a local temple. She allegedly fell into the sinkhole at Jalan Masjid India, a popular tourist district.
Authorities believe she fell into the sinkhole as a large portion of the concrete sewer at the bottom was broken.
Kuala Lumpur has also been hit with heavy rain over the past weeks, which has made the search difficult as the sewer is filled with fast-moving water.
A Second Sinkhole
Less than a week after Vijayalaksmi disappeared, a second sinkhole appeared in Jalan Masjid India, just 50 meters from the first one.
While it has raised alarms, authorities are currently focusing on locating the missing tourist.
Zulkhairi and his diving partner took their latest dive on August 29 at approximately 3 a.m. local time. The pair had decided to re-enter the sewer after a large obstacle was detected by the Fire and Rescue Department.
Due to strong currents, however, they were pulled out of the sewer in less than 30 minutes without having located it.
According to Nor Hisham Mohammad, the director-general of the Fire and Rescue Department, a 15 meter-long obstruction was detected inside the sewer, not too far away from the initial sink hole. It was later determined to be a mass of human waste, solidified cooking oil, hair, and tyres.
Authorities believe the blockage may have prevented the missing individual from being swept to the Pantai Dalam sewage treatment plan, which is located approximately 7km away.
Officials are now using ground-penetrating radars to take a look at the ground below the area. Their hope is that it will allow them to pinpoint changes in material density and voids that could indicate a trapped body.
They are also using high-pressure water jets to break down the obstruction in the large sewage pipe.
Due to the two sinkholes, the surrounding areas have been closed off by authorities. Currently, only authorized personnel are able to access the area.
This has led many to worry about the main road as well as the narrow shopping lanes.
Fadillah Yusof, the Deputy Prime Minister, however, insists that Jalan Masjid India is safe for the public, though they must stay away from the area that is cordoned off.
Despite that, the annual Independence Day celebrations, which were scheduled for August 30 at the Kuala Lumpur City Hall have been cancelled out of respect for the victim.
