Lifts in all high-rise buildings, including government premises,
apartments and hotels must be inspected and serviced regularly to prevent
any untoward incidents, Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Dr Hilmi Yahaya said.
This was to ensure that the lifts did not pose a danger to the public,
he said when commenting on the Friday incident when a 38-year-old woman
from Kelantan died after half of her body was trapped in a lift of a hotel
in Tanjung Bungah.
Dr Hilmi, who described the incident as “abnomal,” said it should not
have happened as lifts were not supposed to move when its doorway was
obstructed.
“It is regretted such an incident had happened. Some-thing must be
wrong with the lift system at the hotel,”' he said.
State Occupational Safety and Health Department de-puty director Mohd
Anuar Embi said an investigation into the incident was still underway.
“It will take sometime for us to complete the investigation. Once it is
completed, we will send the report to our headquarters for further
action,” he said.
Mohd Anuar said lifts must be periodically inspected, add-ing that
competent people with more than 10 years experience must be engaged to
conduct the inspection and maintenance every three months.
“`They must send report to the owners and the department on the
condition of the lifts and the owners should take necessary action
according to their recommendations,'' he said.
He said lift owners should also engage technicians to carry out routine
checks every month.
He said lift owners who failed to abide by the ruling could be fined up
to a maximum of RM5,000 under the Act.
