PASIR GUDANG, June 21 — The latest suspected pollution case in Pasir Gudang that sent 15 students to hospital appears unrelated to the toxic fumes that emanated from Sungai Kim Kim three months ago, a Johor state official said today.
Johor Health, Culture and Heritage Committee chairman Mohd Khuzzan Abu Bakar said the latest affected school in Taman Mawar is 6km away from those hit by the poisonous methane and benzene fumes when Sungai Kim Kim was polluted by improper waste disposal in March.
“The authorities have also found no illegal dump sites nearby the area.
“Both the Fire and Rescue Department and the Department of Environment (DoE) will lead the operation where they would inspect air quality within a two kilometre radius around the affected area for chemical fumes,” he said after visiting the operations centre with several state government representatives at the Pasir Gudang Indoor Stadium following the latest incident.
Present during the visit was state Education, Human Resource, Science and Technology Committee chairman Aminolhuda Hassan and state Housing and Rural Development Committee chairman Dzulkefly Ahmad.
The authorities immediately assembled a team to decontaminate the affected area following initial complaints that it was related to air poisoning yesterday.
The team also started air quality monitoring, with parameter readings for carbon monoxide, hydrogen sulphide and volatile organic compounds.
On the status of the 15 victims, Mohd Khuzzan said only six of them, all students, were warded at Sultan Ismail Hospital for further medical observation.
“I am told that they are in a stable condition,” he said, adding that if there were no new incidents reported by today, the authorities will make a decision on the next course of action tomorrow.
Yesterday, it was reported that the Fire and Rescue Department’s Pasir Gudang station were alerted about a suspected air pollution situation at Sekolah Agama Taman Mawar and Sekolah Kebangsaan Pasir Gudang 4 at 3.39pm, before rushing to the school to render assistance.
A total of 15 victims were taken ill after suffering from symptoms such as breathing difficulties and vomiting.
In March, more than 4,000 people, mainly children, fell ill after a toxic fume incident in Sungai Kim Kim. The fallout from the incident also saw the temporary closure of 111 schools in the Pasir Gudang district.
