KOTA KINABALU: A collapsed wooden bridge in Keningau has cut off direct access for several interior villages, forcing residents to endure more than an hour of travel just to reach town for work, school and medical needs.

The decades-old structure, which had shown signs of deterioration for years, gave way after a lorry crossed it, severing the original 15-minute route and disrupting daily routines for hundreds of villagers.

A villager who only wished to be known as Bonn said the collapse has created major difficulties for families who depend on the road daily.

“They have to use the long alternative route just to go to town for daily essentials, work, school or medical treatment,” he said when contacted.

“I sincerely hope authorities will take immediate action to build a new bridge. I feel very sorry for the villagers who depended on the old bridge as their main route.”

IPOH, Nov 5 — The Perak government has ordered three mining operations near Sungai Perak in Gerik to temporarily halt activities pending the investigations into recent river water discolouration, said Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Saarani Mohamad.

However, Saarani confirmed that the mining operators, allegedly linked to the incident, are licensed and operating legally.

“They are legal. But temporarily, they have been told to stop operations until we are satisfied. All three have stopped,” he said.

Saarani said this to reporters when asked to comment on the alleged river pollution incident after attending the Program Jelajah Taat Setia Madani Perak at the Ipoh Convention Centre here.

He added that the government has also instructed the State Secretary and relevant agencies to take immediate action and conduct site investigations.

“Several agencies were tasked with probing the incident, including the Department of Environment (DoE), Department of Irrigation and Drainage (JPS), the Minerals and Geoscience Department (JMG), the State Land and Mines Office (PTG), and the state Health Department,” he said.

Regarding the condition of Sungai Perak, Saarani said he was informed that the water colour had returned to normal, and therefore did not visit the site despite initially planning to.

“At this stage, it is said that initially some fish died. That means there was a pollution incident,” he said.

Saarani said that the state will not issue an official statement until the departments finalise their findings.

He said the agencies will brief on the latest developments on the incident at the state executive council tomorrow in a meeting chaired by Deputy State Secretary (Development) Haliza Sipun.

“After the exco meeting, we will issue a statement,” he added.

On November 3, DoE said that it has identified three mining operations in the upper reaches of Sungai Perak in Gerik, following reports that the river water had recently turned bluish.

Its director-general, Datuk Wan Abdul Latiff Wan Jaffar, said the area involved one rare earth element (REE) mine and two tin mines.

Wan Abdul said the water samples have been sent to the Chemistry Department to determine the cause and that an investigation is being carried out in collaboration with the Department of Minerals and Geoscience (JMG).

He said preliminary investigations suggested that nearby mining activities were likely the cause of the river’s discolouration, although other possible contributing factors could not be ruled out.

On October 21, photos of Sungai Perak near the Kampung Sungai Papan Bridge, about five kilometres north of Kampung Air Ganda in Gerik, appeared blue, went viral on social media.

JOHOR BAHRU, Nov 5 — The Johor state government is considering granting a water bill rebate following the water supply disruption caused by the pollution of Sungai Johor, which has affected 292,158 user accounts or nearly 1.168 million residents in four districts.

State Works, Transport, Infrastructure and Communication Committee chairman Mohamad Fazli Mohamad Salleh said the decision regarding the matter is expected to be announced during the Johor State Legislative Assembly sitting on November 13.

“The state government is considering (the rebate); wait for the announcement,” he said during a press conference here today when asked whether the state government is considering rebates for affected consumers in Kota Tinggi, Kulai, Pontian, and Johor Bahru, including Gelang Patah.

Mohamad Fazli said water supply is expected to be fully restored by midnight tonight, with only 2,472 user accounts still affected in Taman Impian Emas, Taman Bukit Impian, and Taman Anggerik Emas here.

Meanwhile, he said Sungai Johor will be gazetted as a water source priority area to preserve the water quality and ensure that the worst pollution in the state’s water supply history does not recur.

He said a committee will be established to provide feedback and recommendations to the state government on the move, and all developments along and around Sungai Johor will be identified.

“If gazetted, development activities, including sand mining, will be controlled,” he said adding that efforts to preserve the river must be enhanced, as it supplies water to nearly two million users in Johor.

At the same time, Mohamad Fazli said the raw water turbidity level at the Sungai Johor Basin has gone down to 500 Nephelometric Turbidity Unit (NTU), close to the normal level of 400 NTU, compared with 37,400 NTU recorded during the incident on Friday.

He pointed out that the last pollution incident in 2019 at the upper reaches of Sungai Sayong, within the Sungai Johor area, caused by chicken waste, which led to the closure of the farm only resulted in a raw water turbidity level of about 5,000 NTU.

Earlier, Mohamad Fazli was reported as saying that the pollution on Friday was due to a ruptured sand-washing pond at an inland sand mining site in Kota Tinggi, which forced a temporary shutdown of the water treatment plant operations.

The incident also affected the livelihoods of more than 150 fishermen, including the Orang Asli community along the upper reaches of Sungai Johor. — Bernama

KUALA LUMPUR, 5 Nov: Jabatan Meteorologi Malaysia (MetMalaysia) mengesahkan gempa bumi lemah berlaku di Borneo pukul 6.37 petang tadi.

Menurut MetMalaysia, gegaran dengan magnitud 4.8 itu dikesan pada jarak 227 kilometer (km) dari Sapulut, Sabah pada kedalaman 10 km.

“Gegaran mungkin dirasai di Selatan Sabah. MetMalaysia akan terus memantau keadaan ini,” jelas agensi itu menerusi kenyataan media sebentar tadi. – TVS.