PORTAL RASMI
JABATAN PERDANA MENTERI
AGENSI PENGURUSAN BENCANA NEGARA
JABATAN PERDANA MENTERI
AGENSI PENGURUSAN BENCANA NEGARA
KOTA KINABALU: Sandakan’s coastline is facing worsening waste pollution and an assemblyman there is calling for a solution that has already met with success in Semporna.
Tanjong Papat assemblyman Datuk Frankie Poon Ming Fung is urging for a sea-cleaning initiative, already implemented in Lahad Datu and Semporna, to be expanded to Sandakan waters.
He said the programme has significantly improved coastal cleanliness in those areas and should be replicated in Sandakan to tackle the increasing presence of floating debris and accumulated solid waste.
“I have received reports from the Semporna District Council confirming that the project implemented there since 2021 has had a noticeable positive impact.
“My visit to Lahad Datu with officers from the Sandakan Municipal Council and Lahad Datu District Council reinforced this.
"We saw cleaner waters, and the local authorities said the project not only met their expectations but exceeded them,” Poon said in a statement on Tuesday (March 4).
Sandakan, the second-largest city on Sabah’s east coast, is home to close to 500,000 people and sits approximately 320km from Kota Kinabalu.
The district’s economy relies heavily on tourism, with visitors drawn to its rich biodiversity, pristine islands and marine attractions.
However, in recent years, cleanliness issues, particularly along the coastline, have become a major concern, slowing tourism growth.
The issue of cleanliness in Sandakan gained national attention in February last year when Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing immediately channelled RM200,000 each to Sandakan and Batu Sapi for clean-up efforts.
This happened after Tiong saw firsthand the poor hygiene conditions at a popular seafood restaurant in Kampung Sim-Sim, a water village frequented by tourists.
Despite these efforts, pollution remains a persistent problem, prompting calls for a more structured and long-term solution.
Given the success of the initiative in Lahad Datu and Semporna, Poon believes Sandakan should not be left out.
“I support the proposal to bring this sea-cleaning initiative to Sandakan. With collaboration among the government, local authorities and the community, we can tackle our coastal waste problem more effectively,” he said.
Poon added that he will bring the matter to the state government for urgent implementation.
Cadangan Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur (DBKL) untuk membina sekolah setinggi 17 tingkat seperti yang disebutkan baru-baru ini menimbulkan kebimbangan serius, khususnya dari segi keselamatan pelajar dan guru.
Bangunan setinggi 17 tingkat akan menyukarkan proses evakuasi dalam keadaan kecemasan seperti kebakaran atau bencana lain. Selain itu, penyelenggaraan bangunan sebegini memerlukan kos yang tinggi, termasuk keperluan lif yang berfungsi dengan baik, sistem keselamatan yang ketat, serta pemantauan berkala bagi mengelakkan insiden yang boleh menjejaskan kesejahteraan pelajar.
Dari segi kesesuaian, sekolah bukan sekadar tempat pembelajaran dalam kelas tetapi juga memerlukan ruang untuk aktiviti fizikal, sukan, rekreasi, dan interaksi sosial.
Sekolah bertingkat tinggi boleh memberi kesan kepada kesejahteraan mental dan fizikal pelajar, menjadikannya seolah-olah seperti ‘penjara pendidikan’ yang menghalang perkembangan mereka secara menyeluruh.
Selain itu saya mewakili Gabungan Pelajar Melayu Semenanjung (GPMS) juga menggesa kerajaan untuk meneroka cadangan penubuhan sekolah satu aliran sahaja sebagai langkah jangka panjang bagi menyelesaikan isu kepadatan pelajar serta menjamin perpaduan dalam kalangan warganegara.
Satu-satu kawasan terdapat dua ke tiga jenis buah sekolah maka sudah pasti menyebabkan tanah semakin mengecil hingga menyebabkan tiada lagi ruang untuk membina bangunan di kawasan-kawasan tersebut.
Sistem pendidikan berasaskan kaum yang telah berjalan selama lebih enam dekad dilihat semakin tidak relevan dalam usaha membina negara yang bersatu padu.
Kewujudan pelbagai aliran sekolah bukan sahaja mengekalkan jurang perkauman tetapi menyumbang kepada ketidakseimbangan jumlah pelajar antara sekolah kebangsaan dan sekolah jenis kebangsaan.
Sekolah satu aliran adalah penting untuk mencapai beberapa manfaat utama iaitu bagi mengurangkan kepadatan pelajar sekolah murid berupaya ditempatkan dalam satu sistem pendidikan yang seragam, mengelakkan ketidakseimbangan dan memastikan sumber pendidikan diagihkan secara lebih adil.
Usaha memperkukuh perpaduan nasional iaitu murid daripada pelbagai latar belakang dapat belajar dan berinteraksi bersama sejak kecil, membentuk kefahaman antara kaum yang lebih mendalam.
Oleh itu, kami menggesa kerajaan untuk memulakan perbincangan terbuka mengenai pelaksanaan sekolah satu aliran dan mewujudkan pelan peralihan yang progresif bagi memastikan masa depan pendidikan Malaysia lebih bersatu dan lestari.
FAZREEN FAUZI ialah Presiden Gabungan Pelajar Melayu Semenanjung (GPMS).
KUANTAN: As the scorching afternoon heat intensifies and thick white smoke blows towards him, fireman Mohd Hilmi Jamaludin remains steadfast under the tough conditions to battle the fire at a coconut plantation near the Kuantan-Sungai Ular bypass stretch here today (March 4).
Despite the physical toll of fasting — from dawn to dusk — the 55-year-old from the Gebeng fire and rescue station here continues to push through the gruelling conditions, working tirelessly to help bring the fire under control.
A seasoned campaigner in dealing with forest, bush and peat fires, Hilmi said the heat from the burning embers has been posing a huge challenge for firemen to tackle the massive blaze.
"Putting out the fire in an open area under the sun while observing the holy month of Ramadan is quite an experience.
The strong wind is not doing any good and instead has spread the fire further in some areas forcing us to react fast to avoid it from getting out of hand.
"I have been involved in forest fires for about 30 years and use techniques based on my previous experience to tackle the situation here.
There is a technique to move around when surrounded in thick smoke or near the burning site....one wrong move and you can end up injured.
"We have divided the burning sites into sections and each section has a person-in-charge.
Each head will be given a walkie-talkie so that he can consistently update the temporary base at the site on their movements and operation," he said when met at the plantation site today (March 4).
Hilmi said the firemen would usually perform their prayers at a cleaned area near the burning site and sometimes break fast with water or dates before returning to the temporary base to have other meals.
"We can break fast at the temporary base but the journey out is quite challenging due to the narrow roads. So for the past three days, we have been breaking fast at the site with light meals before returning to the base," he said
Meanwhile, his superior Zahidah Ali, 55, who is the Gebeng fire and rescue station chief, and only woman in the operation, said she has not had the opportunity to return home and break fast with her family since Sunday (March 2).
"I have been breaking my fast with the rest of my team members at the temporary base.
It might be a new experience for some of us but I am quite used to it as I have joined similar operations to douse forest fires during the fasting month in the past.
"I am the person in-charge here as the fire incident occurred at a site under my jurisdiction so I have to be around to give instruction and plan our movements. This is part and parcel of the job," she said.
The duo are among 70-odd firemen involved in putting out the peat fire at the coconut plantation here which broke out on Feb 22.
JAKARTA: Thousands of people were evacuated in Indonesia's capital Jakarta on Tuesday after floods swamped the region, officials said, with heavy rain expected to continue until next week.
Torrential rain since Monday has triggered floods of up to 3-metres in and around Jakarta, the country's disaster agency said in a statement, blocking some roads and submerging over 1,000 houses and many cars.
Jakarta Governor Pramono Anung raised the alert level to the second highest of the critical stages, calling on the local government to activate water pumps to extract water from flooded areas and conduct weather modification operations - which typically includes shooting salt flares into clouds to trigger rain before they reach land.
Local media reported floodwaters also swamped a hospital in the eastern town of Bekasi, with water entering some wards, forcing the evacuation of patients to other buildings, while other parts of the hospital were hit by power outages.
Rescuers on rubber boats sailed through thigh-high water to evacuate residents that had been trapped in floods since 4 a.m. (2100 GMT) at a housing complex in Bekasi, Reuters reporters said.
The country's weather agency warned that heavy rain is forecast to hit the capital and surrounding cities until March 11.
"We need to be alert... But hopefully the weather modification could reduce rainfall," said the agency's head Dwikorita Karnawati.
Sri Suyatni, 50, said she did not have time to collect her belongings before evacuating and her entire house was submerged in flood water. "I hope the floods will soon recede," she said.
The government has started building temporary shelters and distributing foods, clothes, and medications for the evacuees, said social affairs minister Saifullah Yusuf.
Residents were also evacuated to schools, mosques and churches.
The Greater Jakarta metropolitan area, home to more than 30 million people, is regularly hit by floods. But several local media reported the current situation, particularly in Bekasi, was the worst since 2020.
Floods killed 60 in Jakarta in 2020, following the heaviest one-day rainfall since records began in 1866. — REUTERS
SYDNEY: Ketika suhu global terus meningkat akibat perubahan iklim, bandar-bandar dijangka berdepan risiko kebakaran yang semakin meningkat, menurut penyelidik Australia dan antarabangsa pada Selasa, lapor Xinhua.
Satu kajian pemodelan baharu yang diterbitkan dalam Nature Cities meramalkan, jenis kebakaran tertentu di kawasan bandar akan menjadi lebih kerap dalam dekad-dekad akan datang.
Penyelidik menganggarkan bahawa secara global, trend ini boleh menyebabkan tambahan 330,000 kematian akibat kebakaran dan lebih sejuta kecederaan antara 2020 hingga 2100.
Bagaimanapun, jika pemanasan global dapat dihadkan di bawah 1.5 darjah Celsius, jumlah kematian boleh dikurangkan sehingga separuh.
Bagi membuktikan kaitan ini, pasukan penyelidik antarabangsa menganalisis kejadian kebakaran serta suhu udara bulanan tertinggi di lebih 2,800 bandar merentasi 20 negara, termasuk Amerika Syarikat, China, Australia dan Britain, yang mewakili lebih 20 peratus populasi dunia.
Dapatan ini boleh digunakan untuk perancangan bandar masa depan serta strategi tindak balas kecemasan.
Penyelidik turut mengukur bagaimana kekerapan pelbagai jenis kebakaran bandar - seperti kebakaran bangunan, kebakaran kenderaan dan kebakaran luar di lokasi seperti tapak pelupusan sampah - berubah mengikut peningkatan suhu bagi menilai kesan pemanasan global terhadap pelbagai jenis kebakaran bandar.
Di bawah senario pelepasan gas rumah hijau yang tinggi, kebakaran kenderaan boleh meningkat sebanyak 11.6 peratus, kebakaran luar meningkat 22.2 peratus, manakala kebakaran bangunan dijangka berkurangan sebanyak 4.6 peratus menjelang 2100, menurut penyelidik dari Universiti Sains dan Teknologi China, Universiti RMIT Melbourne, Universiti Maritim Shanghai dan Universiti Charles Darwin, antara lain.
Mereka juga menganggarkan pemanasan global boleh menyumbang kepada kira-kira 335,000 kematian berkaitan kebakaran dan 1.1 juta kecederaan di semua bandar yang dianalisis antara 2020 dan 2100. - BERNAMA