The Star 6 Oct 16;
IPOH: Embankments along shorelines in Kedah and Selangor will be reinforced with sandbags as the high-tide phenomenon is expected to occur twice during the next two weeks.
National Disaster Management Agency director-general Datuk Zaitun Ab Samad said the water level from the tidal waves in these flood-prone areas was expected to reach 5m deep.
She said this was the short-term solution that the agency, several NGOs and the private sector were implementing.
“As for the long-term, we will be proposing for bunds to be built, and the planting of more mangrove trees, which are an important natural barrier against natural disasters like floods.
“However, it is extremely costly to plant such trees,” she told a press conference after addressing a forum on the preparedness of the agencies concerned to overcome disasters here yesterday.
Zaitun also advised villagers to move to the relief centres early.
She said since it had been forecast that the next high tide phenomenon was expected to occur between Oct 14 and 19, affected villagers and residents should move to the designated relief centres on Oct 13.
High tide phenomenon: Selangor, Perak & Kedah coastal residents urged to prepare for evacuation
SERI NOR NADIAH KORIS New Straits Times 5 Oct 16;
IPOH: People living in coastal areas and rivers, especially in Selangor, Perak and Kedah, have been urged to prepare for the high tide phenomenon, which is expected to escalate by the middle of the month, triggering floods.
National Disaster Management Agency (Nadma) director general Datuk Zaitun Ab Samad advised residents of the three states living in vulnerable areas to be prepared for the possibility of evacuation.
The phenomenon is expected to strike between Oct 14 and 19.
Based on the forecast by the Meteorology Department, the high tide phenomenon is expected to worsen with waves predicted to be as high as five-metres.
She said that as such, initial preparations must be done now not only be residents, but also by government agencies and non-governmental organisations (NGOs).
Zaitun was speaking at a press conference after officiating the closing ceremony of the Forum on Disaster Preparedness and the launch of the National Preparedness Month 2016 here today.
She said the agency will also make preparations by placing sandbags on ramparts or existing bunds in Selangor and Kedah soon to prepare for the phenomenon.
She said the use of sandbags is important as existing bund, originally built to a height of about three meters, can decrease to 2.5 metres as a result of the sinking process caused by the high tide.
The use of sandbags, as such, will serve to bolster the previous height.
