IPOH, Aug 10 — The 20-storey Kinta Heights low-cost flat at Jalan Bandar Timah has a dark past, once considered a favourite haunt for the suicidal.
From the year it completed construction in 1982 until 1993, a total of 21 people had leapt to their death from the flat.
To put a stop to it, the flat's Rukun Tetangga decided to ask for an allocation from the Ipoh City Council (MBI) to fence off the corridor area from the third to the 20th floor to deter further incidents.
In 2003, they decided to add more colour to rid the flat of its gloomy past by adorning the flat with the Jalur Gemilang during Merdeka with the help of every household in the community.
Rukun Tetangga chairman Chang Kok Aun said due to funding issues, the organisation could only afford to organise the event once every two or three years, .
To date, the flat has organised the event five times.
“Each time it will cost us between RM4,000 and RM5,000 to have the event,” said Chang.
This year, with the collaboration of MBI councillor Richard Ng, a total of 280 flags were put up at the flat.
Chang said the flags, which will be up from July 28 to September 16, was a communit effort.
“We appointed a representative for each floor and we distributed the flags to them so that each unit owner can hang the flags outside their unit.”
As a result of the rukun tetangga's initiative, residents of the nearby flats also decided to join in.
“Although the number is not as high as ours but it's still a good start.”
Chang also said with the flags hanging from the flat, it has become a must-visit place by tourists.
“They would take pictures with the flat in the background,” he said, expressing his joy that the flat known for its negative past has become a tourist attraction of sorts.
