SUBANG JAYA: A total of 200 residents from Putra Heights affected by last month’s gas pipeline fire are considering legal action against the parties deemed responsible.
Farhan Ghani, a lawyer from REC Legal representing the residents, said his team had held three meetings so far with residents from Kampung Kuala Sungai Baru and the Putra Heights area to provide legal guidance.
He said that, to date, 200 out of the 600 affected residents had expressed interest in pursuing legal action over the incident.
“We were here today to offer legal insight and outline the possible avenues residents can take to seek compensation.
“We hope more residents will agree to join the effort. The larger the group, the lower the cost of initiating legal proceedings compared to taking individual action,” he told reporters after a briefing session with affected residents in Putra Heights earlier today.
Farhan said that his team would be responsible for preparing the necessary documents to initiate legal proceedings in court.
The case is also being handled in collaboration with the law firm Hafarizam Wan and Aisha Mubarak.
“Some residents have opted not to pursue legal action for now, citing various reasons — including the sufficiency of aid received and adequate insurance coverage to compensate for their losses.
“There are also residents uncertain about the true extent of the damage they’ve suffered. Without a clear assessment, they are hesitant to proceed with legal action. This is why we are offering damage assessment services to help them better understand the value of their losses,” he said.
Farhan said that another contributing factor was that victims were entitled to choose their own legal representatives, which has led to some residents holding back from joining the joint legal action.
The incident, which occurred at 8.10am on April 1, saw flames shoot over 30 metres into the air, with temperatures reaching up to 1,000 degrees Celsius. It took nearly eight hours to fully extinguish the fire.
The blaze also left behind a crater some 9.8 metres deep at the site.
Earlier, senior lawyer from REC Legal, Datuk Ahmad Redza Abdullah, spent nearly three hours briefing residents on the steps and procedures required to initiate legal proceedings.
© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd
