PORTAL RASMI
JABATAN PERDANA MENTERI
AGENSI PENGURUSAN BENCANA NEGARA
JABATAN PERDANA MENTERI
AGENSI PENGURUSAN BENCANA NEGARA
APRIL 14 — Danger in Malaysia today does not always announce itself with loud sirens or surging floodwaters. Sometimes it drifts in quietly, settling into classrooms sweltering hot by mid-morning, and skies that turn a familiar grey. For children, heatwaves and haze are no longer rare disruptions, but part of everyday life.
The Ministry of Health has reported multiple heat-related cases so far this year. In Kedah, 206 schools were forced to close after Level 2 heatwave conditions were recorded. These may seem like isolated incidents but taken together they point to a more urgent concern. Analysis of global climate data by Unicef indicates that Malaysia now experiences around eight heatwaves a year, roughly four times more than in the 1960s, with each lasting about five days on average. Today, an estimated 1.16 million children in Malaysia are exposed to heatwaves.
We also know that periods of high heat often intersect with the haze season. In recent weeks, several parts of Malaysia have experienced unhealthy air quality, driven by regional forest fires and intensified by hotter, drier conditions. This is not new. Haze is a recurring challenge in Malaysia, with severe episodes often lasting for weeks to months.
What is often overlooked is how much this affects children. Heatwaves present real dangers. Prolonged exposure increases the risk of dehydration, heat exhaustion and heatstroke, as children’s bodies heat up faster and cool down more slowly than adults.
These risks are compounded during haze periods. As children’s lungs are still developing and they breathe more rapidly than adults, poor air quality has immediate and often more severe effects. Evidence from the 2021 report by UNICEF and academic partners (Impacts of Climate Change on Children in Malaysia) shows that haze exposure is linked to increased respiratory illness and hospitalisation among children, with urban and low-income communities disproportionately affected.
While the impacts of heat and haze are frequently seen in clinics and emergency rooms, they are also manifested in missed school days and disrupted routines.
And the impact on learning is significant. Heat makes it harder to concentrate, drains energy and slows cognitive function Over time, these effects accumulate. By graduation, students in the hottest regions can lose up to a year or more of total learning.
Schools may respond by adjusting schedules, cancelling outdoor activities or even introducing temporary school closures. While necessary, these measures point to a deeper issue: heatwaves are increasingly disruptive to education. Unlike floods, they do not destroy infrastructure, but they steadily undermine learning outcomes.
There is also a less visible psychological impact. Repeated exposure to extreme heat, polluted air and environmental uncertainty can increase stress, fatigue and anxiety in children.
More than a disruption
Heatwaves and haze are not seasonal inconveniences. They are systemic challenges, affecting health systems, cities, schools, homes, and ultimately, children’s rights. When environmental stress repeatedly undermines these foundations, their rights are not fully realized.
Malaysia has taken important steps through public health advisories, school guidelines and emergency measures. These efforts matter, but they are no longer sufficient. Climate impacts are intensifying faster than our systems are adapting, and responding to each heatwave or haze episode in isolation will leave more children exposed each year.
From response to readiness
What is needed now is a clear and urgent shift from response to readiness. Heat and air pollution must be treated with the same urgency and policy priority as floods or storms, not as stand-alone hazards but as interconnected, systemic risks to children’s development and daily lives.
Children’s climate adaptation needs should be integrated across key systems such as education, health, social protection, and urban planning. Malaysia’s National Adaptation Plan is an opportunity to drive this shift by strengthening preparedness, particularly in how heat and haze affect children’s health, learning and wellbeing. In practical terms, this means ensuring schools can cope with rising heat through basic measures such as ventilation, shaded spaces and access to safe drinking water. It also means linking early warning systems to timely, coordinated action for schools, clinics and families.
Most importantly, climate adaptation must be grounded in the lived realities of children and young people. They are already navigating overheated classrooms, disrupted learning, and unhealthy air. Listening to their experiences is not symbolic. It is essential to designing solutions that effectively protect their health, dignity and development.
Children are the least responsible for climate threats. But without urgent, collective action, they will shoulder its heaviest burden. Heat and haze are no longer distant environmental concerns; they are reshaping daily life for millions of children across Malaysia. Putting children at the centre of climate resilience is not a choice, it is a national responsibility, and the time to act is now.
*Nasha Lee is a climate and environment specialist at Unicef Malaysia
** This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.
GEORGE TOWN – Punca kematian peguam veteran dan kerani wanita yang maut dalam kebakaran di sebuah pejabat guaman di Lebuh King di sini, semalam disebabkan asfiksia atau lemas akibat penyedutan asap.
Timbalan Ketua Polis Daerah Timur Laut, Superintendan Lee Swee Sake berkata, ini hasil daripada keputusan bedah siasat yang dijalankan di Hospital Pulau Pinang, hari ini.
“Mangsa maut merupakan pesara peguam berusia 88 dan seorang kerani wanita berumur 60 tahun. Hasil bedah siasat mendapati punca kematian mangsa disebabkan oleh asfiksia akibat penyedutan asap daripada kebakaran yang berlaku di unit rumah kedai dua tingkat (kelas A) itu,” katanya di sini, hari ini.
Mendiang Sanmarkan akan disemadikan di Tanah Perkuburan Hindu di Batu Lanchang, Jelutong.
Terdahulu, Kosmo! Online melaporkan dua mangsa terdiri peguam dan kerani wanita disahkan maut terperangkap dalam kebakaran yang berlaku kira-kira pukul 12 tengah hari semalam.
Mayat mangsa yang dikenali sebagai Datuk G. Sanmarkan dan B. Chandra ditemukan di tingkat atas bangunan separa kayu dua tingkat berkenaan.
Mangsa pertama iaitu Sanmarkan ditemukan di atas kerusi berdekatan meja pejabat di tepi tingkap, pada pukul 1.05 tengah hari manakala mangsa kedua dijumpai di bawah timbunan fail, di tepi dinding lokasi sama. – KOSMO! ONLINE
Cemas gerai runtuh hempap pelanggan
- Admin UKK
- Berita
KUALA NERANG – Seorang peniaga berdepan detik cemas apabila sebahagian gerainya runtuh dan menimpa dua pelanggan dalam kejadian ribut di Felda Lubuk Merbau, dekat sini semalam.
Menurut Nik Hasan Nik Su, 47, kejadian berlaku kira-kira pukul 3.30 petang ketika dia dan isteri, Norasiah Hasan, 52, baru sahaja membuka gerai.
“Ribut datang dua kali, yang pertama tidak kuat sangat sebelum datang angin kencang kali kedua. Ribut itu sangat menakutkan menyebabkan saya dan isteri ketakutan, kami berlari masuk ke ruang dalam gerai.
“Waktu itu ada dua pelanggan berusia lingkungan 60-an sedang makan, mereka tidak sempat lari sebelum dihempap struktur bumbung yang runtuh. Selepas ribut reda, saya keluar dan mereka beritahu kena hempap bumbung sebelum beredar,” katanya ketika ditemui di gerainya, hari ini.
Katanya, dalam keadaan kelam-kabut itu, dia tidak sempat bertanyakan keadaan dua pelanggannya itu.
“Angin sangat kuat sehinggakan kira-kira 10 tiang gerai tumbang, sebahagian bumbung juga hilang diterbangkan angin. Saya risau tidak boleh berniaga kerana hanya ini sumber pendapatan untuk menyara keluarga, kedai ini pun saya sewa,” ujarnya.
Seorang lagi peniaga, Iswani Taib, 52, berkata, ia merupakan kejadian terburuk yang pernah berlaku di Felda tersebut kerana lebih 100 rumah dan premis perniagaan terjejas.
“Semasa kejadian, saya sedang berehat di bilik belakang di kedai makan saya ini sebelum terdengar bunyi deruan angin. Datang angin kedua, terus mengangkat keseluruhan bumbung gerai makan dan waktu itu saya hanya mampu melaungkan azan.
“Bumbung kedai diterbangkan ke lorong tengah bangunan kedai iaitu sejauh kira-kira 30 meter. Kerugian dianggarkan RM30,000 dan saya berharap ada pihak yang datang memberi bantuan segera,” ujarnya.
Penduduk, Azizul Ibrahim, 39, berkata, kesan selepas kejadian sangat teruk bagaikan tsunami apabila bumbung rumah termasuk dari rumahnya serta sisa pokok berselerakan di sana sini.
“Angin sangat kuat sehinggakan bangsal kayu di depan rumah saya yang berat itu pun boleh beralih. Selepas bumbung hilang, air hujan masuk ke dalam rumah menyebabkan semua perabot dan barangan elektrik basah.
“Tidak tahulah boleh guna lagi atau tidak, selain itu bumbung juga perlu dibaiki segera yang mana kosnya agak tinggi disebabkan kenaikan harga diesel,” jelasnya.
Dalam pada itu, Pengerusi Majlis Ketua Kampung Dusun, Felda Lubuk Merbau, Mohd. Shahrin Abd. Rahman berkata, sehingga pukul 12 tengah hari ini, kira-kira 143 rumah dilaporkan terjejas akibat kejadian itu dan ia tidak termasuk 30 kedai yang turut rosak. – KOSMO! ONLINE
Student safety top priority: Anwar orders swift action after fire destroys three school blocks in Kelantan
- Admin UKK
- Berita
KUALA LUMPUR, April 14 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today ordered immediate government action to smoothen the learning process after a fire destroyed three buildings at Sekolah Menengah Ugama (A) Darul Ulum Muhammadiah in Bachok, Kelantan.
He named the Ministry of Education, the Implementation Coordination Unit (ICU) under the Prime Minister’s Department, and other relevant agencies.
“This incident is a major test for the SMU(A) Darul Ulum Muhammadiah community. I have instructed the Ministry of Education, the ICU of the Prime Minister’s Department, and other relevant agencies to expedite comprehensive action,” he said in a Facebook post.
Anwar said the government’s priority is to ensure student safety and minimise disruption to learning.
“Our priority now is to ensure the safety of students and the smooth continuation of learning that has been disrupted by the incident,” he said.
He added that his Madani government will expedite assistance and work with all parties to accelerate recovery efforts and restore normal school operations.
Anwar also stressed that student safety, comfort and welfare remain a key priority for the government. Three blocks at the Bachok religious school were 98 per cent damaged by a fire yesterday.
No casualties were reported. The school later announced a move to online classes until Thursday amid repairs.
Padang Terap: "Hanya dalam 15 minit, banyak rumah rosak apabila bumbung diterbangkan dan ada dihempap pokok tumbang akibat ribut," kata Azizul Ibrahim, 39.
Azizul adalah penduduk Felda Lubuk Merbau, Mukim Tekai Kiri, yang terjejas akibat ribut yang menyebabkan 143 rumah serta kedai rosak petang semalam.
Menurutnya, sebelum ini cuaca panas melanda hampir tiga bulan di kawasan itu dan tidak disangka sama sekali ribut melanda secara tiba-tiba kira-kira 3.45 petang.
"Ada penduduk cakap mula-mula berlaku hujan batu sebelum hujan lebat disertai angin kencang.
"Masa itu bumbung tingkat atas rumah kami terangkat dan diterbangkan hingga 200 meter ke kawasan belakang. Saya membawa tiga anak bersama isteri keluar ke tempat selamat sambil melaungkan azan.
"Ketika itu saya nampak banyak bumbung rumah jiran dan penduduk berterbangan. Ia kejadian paling dahsyat pernah berlaku sepanjang saya tinggal di sini, " katanya ketika ditemui di rumahnya di sini hari ini.
Bagaimanapun Azizul bersyukur kerana isteri serta anaknya tidak mengalami sebarang kecederaan dan menganggarkan kerugian yang dialami dalam kejadian itu sekitar RM8,000.
Sementara itu, peniaga kedai makan, Nik Hasan Nik Su, 47, berkata kejadian itu menyebabkan bumbung di bahagian depan premis perniagaannya diterbangkan angin kuat.
Katanya, ketika kejadian juga dia dan isteri, Norasiah Hasan, 52 serta dua pelanggan berada di kedai makan itu.
"Pelanggan cuba melarikan diri apabila angin kencang tetapi dihempap khemah yang runtuh menyebabkan mereka cedera.
"Memang tak sangka ribut akan berlaku kerana sebelum itu cuaca panas seperti biasa dan langsung tak nampak seperti nak hujan," katanya.
Nik Hasan berkata, susulan bencana alam itu dia mengalami kerugian hampir RM20,000 dan berharap bantuan segera dapat disalurkan supaya dapat meneruskan perniagaan.
Katanya, gerai makan itu disewanya sejak 2011 dan perlu dibaiki sendiri tetapi tidak mempunyai wang untuk berbuat demikian memandangkan dia mempunyai dua anak yang masih bersekolah.
Manakala seorang lagi penduduk, Ahmad Harun, 62, berkata, banyak kelengkapan rumahnya rosak terkena air hujan selepas bumbung rumahnya diterbangkan angin kencang.
Katanya, hari ini dia terpaksa menjemur tilam kusyen serta pakaian yang basah akibat terkena air hujan semalam.
Pengerusi Majlis Ketua Kampung Dusun, Felda Lubuk Merbau, Mohd Shahrin Abd Rahman berkata, setakat jam 12 tengah hari ini, kira-kira 143 rumah dilaporkan terjejas akibat kejadian itu dan ia tidak termasuk 30 kedai turut rosak.
Beliau berkata, setakat ini tiada pusat pemindahan sementara (PPS) dibuka di sini dan kebanyakan penduduk masih tinggal di rumah masing-masing dan ada yang berpindah ke rumah ahli keluarga.
Sementara itu, tinjauan di beberapa lokasi di sekitar Felda Lubuk Merbau mendapati penduduk kampung sedang membersihkan rumah masing-masing termasuk runcit dan kedai makan.