KUALA LUMPUR, April 7 (Bernama) -- Ahmad Baharudin Hamid returned today to what remains of his home in Kampung Sungai Baru in Subang Jaya, still blackened and broken from last week’s devastating gas pipeline fire in Putra Heights, searching through the debris for anything salvageable.
His two children, both university students, are preparing to return to campus next week. They’ll need clothes, documents - simple essentials for a future that continues, despite the ashes they now stand in.
The 56-year-old oil and gas employee stood quietly among the charred remains of his home, built on inherited family land. The sight of melted walls, scorched floors and a collapsed roof didn’t weaken his resolve.
“I’ll fix this house bit by bit. I have no plans to move elsewhere,” he said at the temporary relief centre at the Putra Heights Mosque hall.
Ahmad Baharudin, who has lived in the village for the past five years, said his decision to stay was also influenced by one of his four children who lives with autism and works nearby, making it easier for them to maintain a routine amid the chaos.
For now, he’s looking for a nearby rental home to stay in while he repairs the damage. In addition to the house, the fire also damaged the family car and a motorcycle.
Recalling the tragedy on that fateful Tuesday, Ahmad said he heard what sounded like a plane engine revving just before the explosion erupted roughly 70 metres from his home.
He said after the blast, everything outside — clothes, the roof, plastic items — melted or turned to dust from the heat.
But in the midst of destruction, there was gratitude.
“Alhamdulillah, my wife, four children and I managed to escape. None of us were injured,” he said.
The Petronas gas pipeline fire that broke out around 8.10 am on April 1 sent flames more than 30 metres into the sky, with temperatures soaring to 1,000 degrees Celsius. It took nearly eight hours for the blaze to be fully extinguished.
The disaster destroyed 81 homes completely, with structural damage exceeding 40 per cent, another 81 were partially destroyed, 57 were affected but not burned, while 218 houses were not affected.
-- BERNAMA
