PUTRAJAYA, July 29 — The number of calls for open fire cases in four states, namely, Selangor, Perak, Johor, and Sarawak, have risen sharply, exceeding 100 calls per day last week, said the Fire and Rescue Department (JBPM).
In a press conference after the department’s monthly assembly here today, JBPM director-general Datuk Nor Hisham Mohammad said the number of daily calls about open burning surpassed 100 cases on July 25 and 26, reaching 249 calls on Saturday and 244 yesterday.
He said the JBPM received 50 to 60 calls daily on average about open fires, but there was a sudden spike due to the current Southwest Monsoon.
“My biggest concern is that open fires usually involve large areas and take a long time to extinguish,” he said.
The Meteorological Department expects low rainfall to continue until the start of the monsoon transition, which will cause hotter and drier weather until mid-September.
From May 17 until July 27, Nor Hisham said, the JBPM logged 2,491 cases of open burning, involving farmland, shrubs, and rubbish fires.
He said Perak recorded the highest number of open fire cases with 515, followed by Selangor with 344, and Terengganu with 289 cases.
“In June, 685 open fire cases were recorded,” he said.
Following the rise in open burning, Nor Hisham said the JBPM will carry out operations more efficiently and identify hotspots.
“We have identified areas such as landfill sites and will conduct close monitoring,” he said, adding that operations will involve community firefighters.
— Bernama
