Selangor To Deepen Klang River by 2-3m To Allow It To Accommodate 40% More Water & Lower Flood Risk

By Lara Kramer  •  20 Oct 2022 in News

Thirsty for JUICE content? Quench your cravings on our Instagram, TikTok and WhatsApp

To prevent future flooding, the Selangor government will deepen Sungai Klang by 2-3m and strengthen its banks. Izham Hashim, the chairman of the State Infrastructure and Agriculture Committee, announced that operations to deepen the river will start on November 1 at vulnerable and shallow areas that were susceptible to flooding, including those in Seri Muda, Sungai Kandis, and Puchong.

The shallower areas close to the three localities need to be deepened as promptly as possible to ensure the water flows smoothly and to avoid stagnation, according to a technical research on cross-river sections, he claimed.

“In roughly a year, when the river deepening projects are finished, the river will be able to retain 40% more water. Additionally, it will help the water flow more quickly and decrease the likelihood of flooding.

“The deepening works will also entail strengthening the river banks. The project will extend from Klang to the Kuala Lumpur river’s edge,” he added, noting that the work would begin in the vulnerable areas of Seri Muda and Kota Kemuning.

As reported by NST, Izham made this statement after presenting eight state municipalities and six district and land offices that were in charge of high-risk flood zones, 14 portable generators and 14 high-pressure water jets as monsoon preparations.

As chairman of Koridor Utiliti Selangor Sdn Bhd (Kusel), he made a presentation of the gear during the “Kami Prihatin” ceremony. Kusel is a fully owned subsidiary of the government through Menteri Besar Selangor Incorporated. In order to evacuate inhabitants when floods occur, the state also obtained an eight-person motorboat.

Izham also claimed that he had conferred with Tenaga Nasional Bhd to raise low-lying substations and guarantee the supply of mobile generator sets. This was crucial, he said, to prevent a disruption in the delivery of electricity.

In line with that, he also mentioned that the government sought to avoid flooding on the scale of the Seri Muda floods in December of last year, when a power outage rendered the pump houses and floodgates inoperable.