Selangor Halts Puncak Alam Development While It Reviews Local Flood Controls

Selangor halted development work in Puncak Alam on Friday, pending a review of flood mitigation plans and environmental impact assessments after flash floods hit the Kuala Selangor township. The decision puts active development on hold while authorities examine how the area handles runoff and work on immediate repairs.

Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari announced the state executive council's decision in a statement reported by Bernama. The statement called for an immediate halt but gave no date for construction to resume. It also called for faster work on flood mitigation in high-risk parts of Selangor and earlier warnings for motorists on roads where water levels could rise.

One of the sites under examination is the Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) campus in Puncak Alam. Media Selangor reported that Amirudin visited the campus on Friday and ordered repairs to a broken concrete beam as well as an upgrade to the retention pond. The state leader cited more than 100 millimeters of rain at the catchment and said more than 1,000 homes and commercial units were affected. The figure describes affected properties and is separate from any count of people who moved to relief centers.

UiTM's Selangor branch said heavy rain lasted nearly three hours and that a concrete beam in a drain broke under high flows, according to Media Selangor's account of the university's statement. The campus is on higher ground, near faculty buildings, which Amirudin cited in explaining why engineers would need a hydrological study before deciding on a longer-term design.

Amirudin said Puncak Alam experienced flooding on both Nov. 4 and Nov. 5. He also pointed to flows from the neighboring Petaling district along Sungai Subang, Utusan Malaysia reported. The state leader identified affected areas including Hillpark and Taman Seri Alam in Saujana Utama. The sequence of floods and the movement of water across district boundaries help explain why the state is reviewing drainage beyond the campus itself.

Immediate Repairs and the Review

The campus repairs and the development review address different parts of the problem. Repairing a damaged drain can restore a specific route for water to flow. Reviewing flood plans requires examining how runoff from multiple areas reaches ponds, drains and waterways, including where flows meet farther downstream. The state government's announcement did not identify an individual construction project as the cause of the floods.

Amirudin said the state's drainage and irrigation department would work on redirecting water and that agencies would accelerate maintenance of drains and rivers. The statement also addressed a separate disruption in Rawang. The Public Works Department was to temporarily close Jalan Batu Arang after a slope failure to allow repairs. That road closure is a separate measure from the Puncak Alam construction halt.

For affected households at temporary relief centers, Amirudin said aid of up to RM1,500 would come from the National Disaster Management Agency and the state government. The state also said it would speed up cleaning and repair work through its agencies and Yayasan MBI. The amount is the ceiling announced for those at relief centers. The statement did not give an individual payment schedule.

The stop-work order gives the state a chance to review development approvals alongside measures to prevent flooding. The practical details for residents and builders are still to come, including which projects are listed in implementation notices, when authorities will finish the reviews and what drainage work must be completed before activity can resume. The immediate tests are whether the campus drainage repairs can be completed and whether residents and road users receive earlier notice when water threatens to rise again.