MELAKA, March 4 — The Fire and Rescue Department has called on the public to stop open burning in view of the hot and dry weather the country is facing currently, to prevent such fires from spreading and becoming uncontrollable.
Its director-general Datuk Mohammad Hamdan Wahid said that as a result of the weather phenomenon, the department had received an increase in emergency calls about fires in peatland and landfills, involving hundreds of acres of land. The emergencies include fires in the Kuala Langat Forest Reserve in Selangor and the Semeling landfill in Kedah.
“We will monitor areas identified as hot spots besides reporting open burning offences to the Department of Environment.
“We hope the public will help take care of the environment and avoid open burning to prevent the occurrence of thick smoke and haze, as well as unhealthy air quality,” he told reporters after launching a fire safety seminar here today.
On another matter, Mohammad Hamdan said about 85 per cent of 6,500 building premises in the country, including government buildings, hotels, industries and businesses, had obtained a fire certificate (FC) from the department, in accordance with the Fire Services Act 1988.
“There are many buildings today that have undertaken illegal renovations, and this includes changes to fire components and systems in contravention to the Uniform Building By-Laws 1984, and there are also buildings that are not being maintained well,” the director-general said.
He added that all owners of premises which do not yet have a fire certificate, have been issued notices to apply for one urgently, for the sake of occupants’ safety. — Bernama
