Below are the recorded evidences of the victims of Highland Towers from New Straits Time Officials and other genuine resources.
Despite being only 12
at that time, Zhariff Afandi, a former resident of Block 1, remembers the
tragedy vividly.
"It's not
something that ex-residents like me can talk about easily, even today. It was
devastating that a tragedy like this had happened to us. I was playing video
games at a friend's apartment in Block 2 when we heard a loud bang. We rushed
to his balcony, which faced the hillside, and when I saw the landslide rushing
towards my block, my heart sank.
"My one-year-old
brother and six-year-old sister were at home with our maid in our apartment. My
parents were out, and I was very worried for their safety," recalled the
social entrepreneur.
"My friend's
mother decided it was best that we leave the apartment. When we reached the
ground I started to run towards my block, but she pulled me back. Instead, she
led us in the opposite direction to Block 3, out of harm's way. From here we
looked back on Block 1. It had started to fall, buckling forwards a little,
before crashing to the ground in a cloud of dust that was so thick I couldn't
see anything, even my own feet.
"Eventually,
when the dust cleared, all that was left behind was the building in shambles.
After an unnatural, deathly silence, the air was filled with the sound of
people screaming and car alarms going off."
Fortunately for
Zhariff, his siblings and maid had escaped unscathed. More than an hour later,
he was reunited with them.
"The maid had
seen the landslide from our balcony and rushed out immediately with my brother
and sister.
"I was so happy
to see them. Their experience that day was even more astounding. My little
sister told me that as they were fleeing for safety via the staircase, the
stairs were crumbling behind them like a scene from an Indiana Jones movie. She
apologised for not being able to save my microscope, which I received for my
birthday a week earlier, because it was too heavy for her to lift."
Banker Hilton Lee, a
former Block 2 resident, was in the car park when the building fell.
"I made my way
to the car park to move my car to a safer place, after learning that a
landslide had occurred behind Block 1, just to be on the safe side.
"I couldn't
believe what happened next. As I was inserting the key into my car door, I
heard a loud noise and turned around just in time to see the block falling.
From my angle, the building swayed forward slightly first, before crashing to
the ground."
Another former
resident of Block 2, KPWG International Sdn Bhd director Chan Keng Fook, was at
work when he heard the building had collapsed.
"My father
called me, shouting at the top of his voice: 'get down here quickly, Highland
Towers Block 1 just fell down!' I jumped into my car and rushed home.
"As I was
turning into the Highland Towers area from the road, the first thing I saw was
a woman walking towards me covered head to toe in white dust and I sensed
something really bad had happened," said Chan, who is also secretary of
the Highland Towers Residents Committee, Kuala Lumpur.
The scene that greeted
him when he arrived about half an hour later was utter chaos.
"People were
shouting, crying, confused and frightened. At the time, nobody knew what to do.
The Fire Department and police were focusing on searching for survivors in the
collapsed block."
Worried that Block 2
might collapse onto rescuers in Block 1, the army had placed C4 explosives all
around it to bring it down. However, before that, they allowed residents to
return to their apartments in small batches, to pick up necessities.
"I was relieved
to see my father, wife, two children and maid safe and sound. But I had to run
back up to my apartment to get clothing and necessities for my family, lock the
front door to our apartment and look for my wife's car keys, which she had left
behind.
"In their haste
to exit the building, they had not taken anything with them. I also went up to
look for our dog, who was very dear to my children. Happily, we found it in the
area 12 days later."
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