Getting a new lease(hold) of life.
If you're born and bred in Malaysia, you would have heard of the Highland Towers tragedy. If you haven't (tsk!), you can read all about it here.Almost 25 years on, the remains of the apartments lay abandoned...until now!
Housing and Local Government Minister Zuraida Kamaruddin told The New Straits Times that efforts are underway to re-develop the area and turn it into a recreational park.
In fact, the talks have become quite serious as Zuraida said she has met with the Highland Towers Redevelopment Committee not once, not twice, but five times to discuss the plans.
The land structure is perfect to build a recreational park, said Zuraida, and the re-development would benefit the people of Ampang.
PARANORMAL HOTSPOT (APPARENTLY)
Before the plans officially get the greenlight to proceed (Zuraida told the daily that it's still some time off as "there are still many more details which need to be finalised"), it's our duty to inform you that Highland Towers is apparently a paranormal hotspot.A lot of people allegedly experienced supernatural things when they're there -- from hearing people wailing or screaming in the middle of the night to seeing apparitions lingering near the trees in the area -- but after doing some
(Of course, we can't verify if these urband legends are true, so please take it with a grain of salt, 'kay?)
#1 The unwanted hitchhiker
The story goes that in 1994 - a year after the collapse and residents from the other blocks have been evacuated - a taxi driver picked up a young woman in the middle of the night.
The young woman insisted on sitting at the back and when asked where she would like to be dropped off, the young lady replied, "Hillview".
Along the way, the taxi driver tried making small talk with the woman, but the young woman gave short, brief answers, if any.
The driver continued driving in silence, until the woman suddenly motioned him to stop at a junction. Only then the driver realised that they were at the Highland Towers.
Now feeling a bit creeped out, the driver asked the woman why she urgently wanted to come to such a place in the middle of the night.
To that, the woman answered: "I left several of my belongings here".
Now officially terrified, the taxi driver asked her what she left there that's so important, it couldn't wait til the next day.
"My body and my life. I died here last year," the woman chillingly answered.
As the taxi driver turned around to look at the woman, she was - you guessed it! - gone.
#2 The boy who lost his arm
The other infamous urban legend involves one little boy.
Legend has it that a paranormal researcher was doing some investigations at one of the abandoned blocks when he came face to face with a little boy on a flight of stairs.
Taken aback, he asked the little boy what he was doing there.
Turning around and revealing his half-torn face, the boy told the researcher that he's looking for his body part.
"I'm looking for my other arm, I lost it in that building there," the boy said, while pointing to the apartment block that has collapsed.
Needless to say, the researcher left the place in a hurry and never went back.
So, what do you think about these hantu stories? Do you think it's real? Have any Highland Tower ghost stories of your own to share?
Our comment section is open.