Can't depend on us alone, says Fire Dept
Published on: Wednesday, May 25, 2016
Kota Kinabalu: Communities should take prompt action in the event of fire instead of depending entirely on firefighting efforts to be done by the Fire and Rescue Department.Its State Director Nordin Pauzi said it is regrettable that residential fires such as the one that happened in Kudat recently are still occurring."Often times, when firefighters arrived at a fire scene, many houses were already burnt down.
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So these communities should take a proactive action in fighting the fire too."They should think of ways to set up a volunteer or community firefighting squad to act as efficient early detectors of fires and members can work towards putting out the fire to save as many lives and properties as they can even before the arrival of the firefighters," he said.Additionally, he said, fire stations near water villages should create awareness to the villagers of the importance of their participation in volunteer and community firefighting.Nordin said this when met after the Children Fire Safety Club colouring competition here, Tuesday.
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A total of 200 students from 25 schools took part in the competition.Earlier, Nordin said the department is always prepared for any eventuality of a disaster to ensure that the best actions can be taken before, during and after a disaster.
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"Before any disaster, we have improvised our standard operating procedures (SOP)," he said when replying to questions about the eventuality of floods occurring in the State during the rainy season.He added that the department had also conducted evaluations on flood-prone areas and worked with other agencies such as the Welfare Department, village chiefs and local leaders so that steps can be taken to provide early warnings to the villages which are located in disaster-prone areas so as to ensure that any evacuation can be done before disaster strikes.""We have already gathered information from the Department of Drainage and Irrigation and the Meteorological Department regarding the rise of water levels at rivers or the tidal cycle in the ocean and based on these information, we have already given a verbal warning to village chiefs and local leaders to make the necessary preparations," he said.Nordin added that the department itself is ready logistically and all fire and rescue personnel are prepared for any floods to happen.Regarding the flash floods in Kota Belud, Nordin denied the floods occured due to a rise in water levels in the rivers, rather it was due to overwhelming rainfall within a short period of time.He also confirmed a slight mud flood that occurred in Kundasang on Monday, caused by heavy downpour in the area which caused flash floods and later on, mud floods."The mud floods were due to disaster waste, an aftermath of the Ranau earthquake last year. The relevant authorities need to ensure that all waste after the quake such as eroded soil, rocks and trees on the mountain do not obstruct the river flow, which will cause mud floods."Additionally, many tributaries have become shallow due to the amount of eroded soil and sediments that have been lodged in the river beds and might not be able to allow a huge amount of rainwater to flow downstream," he said.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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