Second re-heighting of Mt Kinabalu
Published on: Thursday, July 02, 2015
Kota Kinabalu: A second re-heighting of Mount Kinabalu will be carried out once the current aftershocks following the June 5 earthquake cease, said the Survey and Mapping Department (Jupem).Its Federal Director Datuk Ahmad Fauzi bin Nordin said this was determined during a meeting with the Mineral and Geoscience Department in Kuala Lumpur to discuss the proper action plan in view of the Ranau quake.Both departments are under the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry's purview.
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"However, the Mineral and Geoscience Department said it is very difficult to predict when the aftershocks will stop due to the active faults that exist there. We are on stand-by mode," Ahmad Fauzi said, adding that the department would survey the peak as it is one of the highest in South-East Asia, and also the pride of the nation.Ahmad Fauzi was commenting on the possible reduction of Mount Kinabalu's height as suggested by Universiti Malaysia Sabah's (UMS) Natural Disaster Research Unit chief Prof Dr Felix Tongkul who presented the theory during a public lecture series on the Ranau quake recently.Felix said the June 5 tremor had cut through the granite mountain, hence could have reduced its height. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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The current height of the mountain recorded with the aid of GPS is 4,095m. It was done under a joint re-heighting exercise carried out by the Institute of Sabah Malaysia (Sabah chapter) and included Daily Express in 1997.
