As downpours cause havoc to traffic and force
                 residents to evacuate their houses, experts
                 question the pace of development around KL

                 KUALA LUMPUR -- Thousands of motorists were
                 trapped for hours on an inundated expressway south of
                 Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday night, prompting experts
                 to urge the authorities to look at ways of reducing flood
                 hazards on major highways.

                 The floods blocked the Federal Highway and a railway
                 line in the Klang Valley around the capital, following a
                 downpour.

                 The Federal Highway near Batu Tiga and the North
                 Klang Valley expressway at Bukit Raja were closed for
                 several hours.

                 Civil department head of operations Major Jasri
                 Mohamed Yusof said rescue operations had been
                 hampered in several areas as his men could not reach
                 the affected areas, with some parts under 2 m of water.

                 Hundreds of people, forced out of their homes by flash
                 floods in the Kuala Lumpur area and in the northern
                 state of Perak, remained in evacuation centres
                 yesterday. Some of about 300 people, evacuated from
                 the Shah Alam area, returned home yesterday as the
                 water receded.

                 But 350 people, who quit their homes near Ipoh, the
                 Perak state capital, may have to spend the Hari Raya
                 Aidalfitri holiday in evacuation centres.

                 The floods pose questions about the pace of
                 development around Kuala Lumpur, experts said.

                 Mr Azizan Abu Samah, head of the geography faculty at
                 Universiti Malaya, said: "There are too many rapid
                 changes to the land due to development.

                 "Rivers are getting shallower and drainage needs are
                 overlooked."

                 He said something had to be done quickly about
                 highways prone to floods.

                 "The design of such highways needs to be examined,
                 especially spots where water will gravitate relatively
                 fast," he added.

                 Meanwhile, heavy rains in Pahang triggered a landslide
                 about 18 km from the resort of Cameron Highlands,
                 killing at least four people yesterday. Police said the
                 bodies of two Malaysians and two Bangladeshis had
                 been recovered and they were searching for one more
                 person.

                 The tragedy occurred during a downpour early
                 yesterday when the victims were asleep in their huts. --
                 AFP, The Star/Asia News Network, AP

                       Adapted from The Straits Times, 7 Jan 2000.