Rizalman Hammim New Straits Times 18 Mar 19;
JOHOR BARU: Schools in Pasir Gudang will remain closed until the term break next week, said Education Minister Dr Maszlee Malik.
He said the decision was made after a briefing with the authorities and experts who are involved in the chemical dump issue at Pasir Gudang.
“Following the briefing, it was decided that the schools could not reopen yet. The decision was taken as a precautionary measure," he said in a press conference after visiting the medic base at the Pasir Gudang Indoor Stadium.
During the visit, he was also briefed on the latest situation by the relevant agencies.
According to Maszlee, the ministry would decide if the schools could reopen after the term break ends.
On March 13, the ministry announced that all 111 schools in Pasir Gudang would be closed following the illegal chemical dump in Sungai Kim Kim which caused a number of students to fall sick after inhaling toxic fumes.
In Johor, the school term break begins on March 22 until March 30.
On whether the schools will need to replace the off days, Maszlee said there was no decision yet.
"Our main concern now is the safety and health of students and school staff," he said, adding that there are also no changes in the dates of the public examinations.
Earlier, Maszlee visited the victims at the Sultanah Aminah Hospital.
Air quality in Pasir Gudang improving
Rizalman Hammim New Straits Times 18 Mar 19;
JOHOR BARU: The air quality in Pasir Gudang continues to improve and the Ministry of Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change (MESTECC) will continue to monitor the situation to ensure that the situation stabilises.
The Environment Department (DoE) said in a statement that 30 monitoring teams from MESTECC took air quality readings at 42 schools in Pasir Gudang on Sunday.
“The readings were taken at noon, 3pm and 6pm. Overall, almost all schools showed a volatile organic compound (VOC) reading of zero per cent, except at SK Taman Rinting 3,” the statement said.
“The readings at the school showed a one time VOC level of five parts per million (ppm) and three ppm at 3 pm on the ground floor and first floor of the schools respectively.”
The department said the monitoring teams would continue to take readings at the schools at 9am, noon, 3 pm and 6 pm daily.
“No reading of hydrogen disulfide was recorded at the schools,” said DoE.
Chemical pollution: 119 patients discharged from Johor hospitals
Bernama New Straits Times 18 Mar 19;
JOHOR BARU: A total of 119 people have been discharged from Sultanah Aminah Hospital (HSA) and Sultan Ismail Hospital (HSI) as of midnight last night, following chemical pollution in Sungai Kim Kim near Pasir Gudang, which broke out 12 days ago.
Johor Health, Environment and Agriculture Committee chairman Dr Sahruddin Jamal said this brought the total of people still warded at the two hospitals to 29, from 120 reported yesterday.
He said four people were still in the intensive care unit (ICU) compared to seven previously, and they were reported to be in stable condition.
In a statement today, Dr Sahruddin said 30 teams from Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change Ministry would be mobilised to monitor air quality at 42 schools within five- to nine-kilometre radius of the polluted river in Pasir Gudang.
“The team comprised of Department of Environment (DoE) and Chemistry Department personnel who will carry out comprehensive monitoring activities from today,” he said.
Meanwhile, Dr Sahruddin said portable gas detectors would be used by the monitoring teams to ensure that the air quality in the affected areas is at the safe level.
“Five parameters to be monitored included oxygen, carbon monoxide, low exposure limit (LEL), the volatile organic compound (VOC) and hydrogen sulfide (H2S).” he said. -– Bernama
Nine arrested over toxic pollution
The Star 19 Mar 19;
JOHOR BARU: Police have arrested nine men in connection with the Sungai Kim Kim toxic chemical pollution in the Pasir Gudang district.Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Mohamad Fuzi Harun said two of them were detained here while seven others were caught outside Johor Baru on Sunday.
“We are unable to reveal their ages and where they were picked up as this could jeopardise our investigation,” he told reporters after presenting Pingat Jasa Pahlawan Negara awards to 396 retired and serving police officers at the Johor police headquarters here yesterday.
Mohamad Fuzi said the suspects would be remanded for six days starting from yesterday.
Factories suffering millions in losses
mohd farhaan shah, zazali musa, and venesa devi The Star 19 Mar 19;
JOHOR BARU: Factories located within the Pasir Gudang industrial area are suffering millions of ringgit in losses following the chemical pollution at Sungai Kim Kim, according to a local leader of the small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
SME Association of South Johor adviser Teh Kee Sin said although some of the factories had temporarily shut down their operations, it was still early to tell the exact losses.
“March is normally a busy month for manufacturers as orders start to pick up after the long Chinese New Year break in February,” he said.
Teh said manufacturers had to suspend operations for now as they did not have enough production workers to cope with the increased orders.
He revealed that there were about 700 factories operating in Pasir Gudang.
Of these, 450 were in heavy industries employing thousands of workers, including Sabahans and Sarawakians who have made Pasir Gudang their home.
The main priority now, he said, was to clean up Sungai Kim Kim and restore confidence in Pasir Gudang residents that the place was safe for them.
“Once the situation returns to normal, manufacturers are likely to scramble to fulfil their orders,” he said.
Teh also criticised the state government for what he called its slow response in handling the incident, adding that there was a lack of updates and accurate information to the people initially.
