This came just a day after the government announced it had terminated 58 concessions for water treatment, involving six water contractors, on Friday.

State Water Department director Amarjit Singh said he could not be sure whether these incidents had anything to do with the termination of these contracts.

He said his department had lodged a police report and left it to the police to investigate these incidents.

“When we went to check these burst pipes, the way they were broken was weird.”

He said no vehicles passed over these affected areas to cause the damage, unless they were deliberately driven there.

On Friday, the Sabah government announced it had terminated 58 concessions for water treatment after claiming the 20-year agreements the companies signed were lopsided.

Infrastructure Development Minister Peter Anthony said the concessions were awarded by the previous state government.

They have until Jan 15 to pack up and leave. Contractors are allowed to claim payment for works that cost more than RM5,000.

Anthony said the department would absorb all the 1,335 employees affected but their terms of employment, including the duration of their contract, will be reviewed.

Under the agreements, the concessionaires were paid RM3.7 billion to oversee and manage the 58 water treatment plants and dams for 20 years.

Amarjit said the first complaint on broken pipes was received on Saturday along Jalan Sulaman, near Likas. This affected supply to the heavily populated Kingfisher area there.

“This involved a 700mm pipe. Soon after, we received another complaint along Jalan Sulaman, but we suspect this was due to construction works carried out there,” he said.

On Sunday night, the department received complaints that areas such as Luyang had no water supply, he said.

He said they were surprised to find an offtake valve in a monsoon drain had been shut down.

“No one except the engineers and those involved in its maintenance know there is an offtake valve in the drain. That was another red flag.”

Amarjit said other assets broken were the air valves on certain pipes.