A Year After The Putra Heights Gas Explosion, Questions Still Burn

Greenpeace Malaysia is marking the one-year anniversary with a documentary screening in Kuala Lumpur on 11 April 2026, keeping the pressure on for answers the community says it still has not received.

Greenpeace/Choo Choy May

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A fire that tore through Putra Heights one year ago left a 20 to 30-storey wall of flames in its wake, damaged more than 500 homes, and sent over 110 people to the hospital.

Twelve months on, the community is still waiting for answers.

Greenpeace Malaysia has produced a documentary — Putra Heights One Year On: Unanswered Questions Remain — that revisits the pipeline fire and asks what the public still does not know: what truly caused the explosion, and whether it could happen again.

The film will be screened this Saturday (11 April), from 2:30 pm to 5:30 pm at Level 5-3A, Menara Sentral Vista, 150 Jalan Sultan Abdul Samad, Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur.

Entry is by RSVP.

Greenpeace says it stood alongside affected residents in demanding accountability in the aftermath of the blast, and the documentary is its effort to bring those community voices to a wider audience.

A Community Still Counting the Cost

The explosion occurred on 1 April, 2025, at around 8.10 am — the second day of Hari Raya Aidilfitri — when a Petronas underground gas pipeline ruptured, sending flames 30 metres into the air and burning at temperatures exceeding 1,000°C.

The blast affected 529 residents from 118 families, destroyed 87 units outright, damaged 235 premises in total, and left 126 people injured.

Victims of the Putra Heights explosion not only dealt with physical injuries but also required significant emotional and psychological support to recover from the traumatic event.

In the aftermath, survivors sought hope amid the devastation.

However, many contemplated reconsidering their future in Putra Heights.

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Legal Action, RM68 Million in Claims, and Calls for RCI

The Department of Occupational Safety and Health concluded the pipeline failed due to an inability to withstand weight and pressure, worsened by poor soil conditions — a finding officials have categorised as an act of soil, stopping short of assigning direct blame.

Residents have since initiated legal action against PETRONAS Gas and the government, seeking compensation, while repair works, funded through a state programme, are targeted for completion by June 2026, with up to RM60,000 per household.

Insurance companies, meanwhile, have been setting conditions for payouts, with some residents experiencing delays until they provide proof of repairs.

PETRONAS Gas, which owns and operates the gas transmission system, is facing RM68 million in claims related to the explosion damage, underscoring the scale of the financial implications of this event.

At the same time, NGOs have been calling for a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI), arguing that the official investigation has not been transparent enough and that no one has been held accountable for what happened.