KL’s 118 Mall faces breakdowns, water leakage & vandalism 2 days after grand opening

Shoppers dismayed by fallen scaffoldings, water leakages at new Kuala Lumpur mall

On 1 Nov, shoppers in Kuala Lumpur could finally let the excitement subside as the massive 118 Mall opened its doors to the public.

However, a few days after its grand opening, shoppers started to notice that the mall may not be as luxurious as expected.

Visitors noted elevator and escalator breakdowns, water leaking from fountains, and even vandalism at certain parts of the mall.

These faults disappointed netizens and made many question if the contractors and management even checked the mall before opening it to the public.

Giant scaffolding fell down along walkway

In a TikTok video posted on 3 Nov, a shopper captured a few instances of the mall’s mishaps on the second day of its opening.

The Original Poster (OP) shared footage of a scaffolding that had fallen onto the walkway, revealing an unfinished space in the mall.

No one appeared to be injured by the fallen board. By the side, a security guard was making a call on the phone.

“If I was one of the people that got caught underneath here, I wouldn’t be running to the end. I would literally fall down onto the floor and start screaming,” said the OP.

“Hope for RM100,000 compensation, you know.”

A few of security guards and workers later brought the scaffolding back up, pushing against it to prevent it from falling again.

Later, the OP noticed another scaffolding that was also on the verge of falling, although the mall guards quickly blocked the walkway.

“It seems as though they are aware of the potential lawsuits,” the OP said.

“So they’ve shut down both ends and have assigned a guard to each end to make sure that nobody goes through that bit.”

Water fountains leaking, cracks visible on ceilings

The OP also pointed out that the water fountains at the mall “seem[ed] to be leaking”, as they observed a few buckets placed around the mall.

“Everything seems to be going wrong here,” they said.

Multiple staff members were also seen cleaning the wet floors, with several caution signs placed around the mall.

Later, the OP also found a “little crack in the wall” where water was still leaking from the ceilings.

Not a very ‘electrifying’ shopping experience

Around the mall, the OP spotted one of the cafés without lights, commenting that the mall needed to “get the electricians back”.

A few escalators had also stopped working and had to be cordoned off.

In a separate video, one TikTok user shared a clip where a few shoppers were allegedly trapped in the lift for 40 minutes on 2 Nov.

One of the trapped individuals was a 10-month-old child, who started fussing because of the lack of ventilation in the elevator.

The shopper further claimed that the elevator emergency number was incorrect and they could not call for help due to poor cellular service.

Already displayed signs of vandalism

Despite all the construction hiccups, the mall also had other issues arising.

Another creator, who visited the mall on its first day, noted in a video that there were already cases of vandalism around the mall.

The creator observed that a Deepavali Kolam floor art had been destroyed, shaking his head in disappointment.

Although other artworks such as the animal sculptures remained intact, the creator commented that without any barricades, these animals will “one day meet their end”, as several children are seen riding the animals.

“These animals will be riddled with scars,” the creator joked.

Netizens questioned if the management even conducted checks

Several videos of the mall’s hiccups went viral online, and quickly caught the attention of many netizens.

Many expressed disappointment and criticised the management for not doing quality checks before opening it to the public.

Some already expected the mall to fail, expressing displeasure at the number of new malls in Malaysia.

A few criticised the mall’s design, especially the water fountain along the side of the walkways.

Also read: Bomb threat at JB shopping mall confirmed as hoax after no explosives found

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Featured image from Merdeka 118 and @kiahinchina on TikTok.