Cloud seeding operation yields 4.0mm of rainfall in Papar

PAPAR: The Cloud Seeding Operation (CSO) conducted in Sabah has successfully produced 4.0 millimetres of rainfall until 4pm Friday in Papar, said District Disaster Management Committee chairman, Mohd Fuad Abdullah.

He said a Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) C-130 aircraft took off at 10.25am from Labuan to conduct the CSO on Friday before concluding at 1.56pm with a success rate of 67 per cent.

“The CSO was carried out in catchment areas in Papar, Lahad Datu and Tawau to increase river water levels to meet domestic needs,” he said in a statement here on Saturday.

He said the overall threeday CSO, which ended on Saturday, was conducted in collaboration with the National Disaster Management Agency (NADMA), the Malaysian Meteorological Department, RMAF and the Federal Territory of Labuan Water Supply Division.

Mohd Fuad said Papar also experienced the direct effects of unhealthy Air Pollutant Index (API) readings ranging from 151 to 200 in the Kimanis area on Friday.

“After the success of the CSO, the API in Kimanis as of 9pm Friday had slightly decreased to 175 but still remains at an unhealthy level,” he said.

Meanwhile, a check on the Malaysian Department of Environment's Air Pollutant Index Management System (APIMS) website found the API in the Kimanis area to be at 158 as of 10am on Saturday, the only area in Sabah recording unhealthy API.

On March 13, Mohd Fuad, who is also the Papar District Officer, declared the district a drought disaster area following a water supply crisis due to the prolonged drought affecting the area.