The fire and rescue department said there were no casualties and the fire was continuing to burn at the waste disposal site, which is Penang’s main landfill.

Tonight’s fire is one of the many that have occurred in recent years. A major blaze in January 2022 affected 11ha, with firefighting efforts stretching over several days. Another fire was reported four months later.

The most recent one last September razed an area measuring 5,000 sq m (half hectare).

SEBERANG PERAI – Tapak pelupusan sisa pepejal dengan ketinggian kira-kira enam meter di Sungai Burung, Nibong Tebal di sini dilaporkan musnah dalam satu kejadian kebakaran, malam tadi.

Kejadian yang berlaku pada pukul 8.13 malam itu bagaimanapun tidak mengakibatkan sebarang kemalangan jiwa mahupun kecederaan mangsa.

Penolong Pengarah Bahagian Operasi Kebombaan dan Penyelamat Jabatan Bomba dan Penyelamat Malaysia negeri, John Sagun Francis berkata, operasi memadamkan kebakaran melibatkan keanggotaan dari Balai Bomba dan Penyelamat (BBP) Nibong Tebal.

Menurutnya, usaha memadamkan kebakaran turut mendapat bantuan dari BBP Sungai Bakap, Penanti dan Bayan Baru.

“Kebakaran berlaku di fasa tiga dengan anggaran keluasan keseluruhan 32 ekar itu telah terbakar sebanyak 0.23 ekar dan telah berjaya dikawal pada pukul 10.13 malam tadi. Tiada mangsa dilaporkan terlibat.

“Kerja-kerja memunggar sisa pepejal dijalankan dengan bantuan dua buah jengkaut bagi memudahkan pemadaman dilakukan secara ‘direct attack’ dan membuat ‘free break’ bagi mengekang kemerebakan api,” katanya di sini.

Beliau memberitahu, kebakaran telah dapat dipadamkan pada pukul 11.29 malam dan kerja-kerja ‘overhaul’ diteruskan bagi memastikan kebakaran padam sepenuhnya.

Khamis lalu, Jabatan Bomba dan Penyelamat Malaysia (JBPM) Pulau Pinang mengambil masa hampir 20 jam untuk melakukan ‘overhaul’ di lokasi kebakaran hutan Bukit Bendera, Jalan Kebun Bunga bagi mengelak kejadian berulang.

Kebakaran berlaku melibatkan kawasan hutan berbukit yang berkeluasan kira-kira 20 ekar (lapan hektar). -KOSMO! ONLINE

JAKARTA – Lubang benam gergasi yang muncul di sebuah kawasan sawah padi di Aceh Tengah, wilayah Aceh semakin membesar dan dalam sehingga mencapai kedalaman 100 meter, lapor laman berita Kuat Baca semalam.

Rakaman terbaharu imej lubang misteri tersebut menimbulkan kebimbangan penduduk setempat, terutamanya ketika ancamannya semakin meningkat.

Menurut Agensi Geologi, lubang benam gergasi itu merupakan fenomena geologi yang disebabkan oleh gabungan faktor semula jadi. 

Salah satu punca utamanya adalah keadaan tanah dan batuan di kawasan tersebut yang agak mudah terdedah kepada luluhawa dan pergerakan bawah tanah.

“Hujan lebat yang berterusan boleh mempercepatkan proses pelarutan dan hakisan di bawah permukaan tanah. Akibatnya, rongga bawah tanah terbentuk yang akhirnya tidak dapat menampung berat tanah di atasnya.

“Proses inilah yang menyebabkan lubang benam gergasi terus membesar, terutamanya jika faktor pencetus berterusan,” katanya.

Agensi Geologi menekankan bahawa lubang gergasi yang sentiasa membesar itu menimbulkan potensi risiko yang serius. 

“Ancaman utama adalah kemungkinan berlakunya tanah runtuh selanjutnya di kawasan sekitar, terutamanya jika kawasan tersebut masih mengalami pergerakan tanah yang aktif.

“Kawasan perumahan, tanah pertanian dan jalan masuk berdekatan berisiko jika lubang itu membesar. Gegaran kecil, aktiviti manusia atau hujan lebat boleh mencetuskan tanah runtuh tambahan, sekali gus membahayakan keselamatan,” kata agensi berkenaan.

Justeru, Agensi Geologi menggesa orang ramai supaya mengelak daripada mendekati lubang gergasi tersebut dan mengehadkan aktiviti di kawasan sekitarnya. 

Langkah-langkah keselamatan sementara, seperti memasang penghadang dianggap penting untuk mencegah kemalangan.

“Sebagai langkah pertama, Agensi Geologi mengesyorkan pemantauan intensif terhadap perkembangan lubang gergasi tersebut. Pemantauan ini bertujuan untuk menentukan kadar pembesarannya dan potensi lubang baharu muncul di kawasan sekitarnya,” katanya. – AGENSI 

LISBON, Feb. 5 (Xinhua) -- A series of powerful Atlantic storm systems has swept across Portugal in recent weeks, leaving at least 11 people dead and hundreds more injured or displaced, while causing widespread damage to infrastructure. Authorities have also warned that another round of severe weather could hit the country as early as next week.

The storms, named Kristin and Leonardo by meteorological services, triggered flooding, landslides, power outages, and transport disruptions across large parts of the country, particularly in central Portugal, where the districts of Leiria, Coimbra, and Santarem, all north of the capital Lisbon, reported the heaviest losses.

Falling trees and structures blocked roads, while schools, rail services, and ports closed temporarily as heavy rain, strong winds, and rough seas battered the territory.

In response, the government declared a state of calamity until Sunday in 68 municipalities and announced a support package worth up to 2.5 billion euros (2.95 billion U.S. dollars) for affected households, companies, and local authorities.

Storm Leonardo, after Kristin, was less violent in terms of peak winds but compounded the damage by falling on already saturated soils. Civil protection officials reported more than 100 emergency incidents during the early hours of Wednesday alone, mostly linked to floods and landslides.

The storms also hit the electricity network. At the height of Leonardo, thousands of customers were without power, mainly in Leiria, Santarem, Castelo Branco, and Coimbra districts, all north or northeast of Lisbon.

Utility companies said restoration work was ongoing, with supply already largely reestablished in some municipalities.

According to the Portuguese Institute for Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA), the extreme weather resulted from a rapid succession of Atlantic low-pressure systems combined with an unusually weak and displaced Azores High, the semi-permanent anticyclone that often shields Portugal from winter storms.

Meteorologists said the storms were fed by an "atmospheric river" carrying large amounts of moisture from the subtropical Atlantic, leading to persistent and intense rainfall. In mountainous areas of northern and central Portugal, accumulated precipitation between 150 and 200 millimeters was recorded over several days.

Some of the systems underwent "explosive cyclogenesis," a process in which atmospheric pressure drops very rapidly, intensifying winds and rainfall over a short period.

Angela Lourenco, a meteorologist at IPMA, said that such events can produce "episodes of extreme wind, often brief but highly destructive."

Climate scientist Pedro Matos Soares, a professor at the University of Lisbon, said that sequences of storms like those seen this winter are relatively rare but not unprecedented in Portugal's transitional climate between subtropical and mid-latitude zones.

He cautioned against directly attributing individual storms to climate change, while noting that scientific projections consistently show an increase in the intensity of extreme precipitation events as ocean and air temperatures rise.

"When these storms hit, they tend to be more energetic," he said, citing higher atmospheric moisture content and warmer oceans as contributing factors.

Despite extensive flooding of farmland, agricultural groups sought to reassure consumers that food supplies would remain stable.

Luis Mira, secretary-general of the Confederation of Portuguese Farmers, said the country's integration into the European single market would prevent shortages or extraordinary price increases.

"If a product does not come from one place, it comes from another," he said, adding that consumers were unlikely to notice disruptions.

The retailers were more cautious. Goncalo Lobo Xavier, secretary-general of the Portuguese Association of Distribution Companies, said it was too early to assess potential impacts on prices, stressing that distributors were focused on maintaining logistics and supporting primary producers.

To support the sector, Agriculture Minister Jose Manuel Fernandes announced an additional 40 million euros in grants for farmers in the affected municipalities, aimed at restoring productive capacity where losses exceed thirty percent.

Authorities warned that the respite expected over the weekend would be brief.

The head of the Portuguese Environment Agency said the Portuguese Institute for Sea and Atmosphere had indicated renewed heavy rain in northern and central regions later this week, followed by another Atlantic depression early next week, which could be named Marta if it meets international alert criteria.

Coastal areas remain on alert, with significant wave heights of five to six meters forecast, and occasional peaks up to 12 meters, prompting temporary closures of several ports.

As recovery efforts continue, officials urged residents to closely follow weather updates and adhere to safety advice, warning that Portugal's run of severe winter storms may not yet be over. (1 euro = 1.18 U.S. dollar)