Malaysia: Heavy rain next week

ROYCE TAN The Star 10 Dec 15;

PETALING JAYA: Heavy rain is expected in the east coast states of peninsula Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak next week.

According to the Malaysian Meteorological Department, heavy bouts of rain are forecast to last more than a day due to a cold surge.

Its spokesman Dr Hisham Mohd Anip said the exact day of the occurrence could not be determined yet as the weekly wind forecast changed almost daily.

“Cold air coming from mainland China due to a burst of high air pressure will most probably occur next week.

“People in Sabah, Sarawak and the east coast states need to be on their guard due to this weather phenomenon.

“The rainfall intensity in Sabah and Sarawak might reach up to 100mm a day, while it is around 50mm for the east coast states,” he said yesterday.

A rainfall intensity of 50mm is moderate and 100mm is considered heavy.

Dr Hisham said there would be a smaller number of cold surge occurrences during the north-east monsoon season this year due to the El-Nino phenomenon.

He said on average, there would be around five cold surges each season but this year, only two or three were expected.

“The wet spell is expected to last only until the end of the month with generally fair weather from January to March,” he said.

The public can get the latest updates on the weather through its website www.met.gov.my or Facebook page at www.facebook.com/malaysiamet or its Twitter handle @malaysianmet.

Meanwhile, Fire and Rescue Department director-general Datuk Wan Mohd Nor Ibrahim said the department was already on standby and ready for any eventuality.

He said there were some 14,000 personnel nationwide and they were prepared to be deployed for rescue operations.

“Since Nov 15, we have already set up operation centres to monitor the flood situation in the country.

“Our personnel also keep tabs of weather forecasts daily and are in constant contact with the Meteo­rological Department,” said Wan Mohd Nor.

He added that the department had purchased 50 additional rescue boats this year, bringing the total number to 600 boats nationwide.

“We have also bought 100 lorries to facilitate evacuation exercises and 200 generator sets to be used for lighting and charging cellphones in the event of power failures due to flooding.

“These generators will also be sent to flood relief centres,” he said.