Council failed to follow SOP in disposing dog carcasses, admits mayor
MIRI: Miri mayor Adam Yii admitted yesterday that Miri City Council ( MCC) did not follow the standard operating procedure ( SOP) in the disposal of dog carcasses, following the recent discovery of the remains of dead canines at the Kuala Baram waste disposal area.
He said the council will continue to strive to better handle the situation and take steps to ensure that everything is done according to their SOP.
“MCC must do the correct things in accordance to our SOP and to carry out the best practices as rabies is a very contagious and deadly disease. We will not let any shortcoming deter our efforts and determination to improve the situation,” he told a press conference here.
The discovery of the dumped dog carcasses prompted Pujut assemblyman Dr Ting Tiong Choon to lodge a police report yesterday.Yii said the indiscriminate dumping of the carcasses took place near the council’s temporary dog pound, and assured that MCC was seriously looking into the matter.
“In normal circumstances, the dogs will be euthanised and buried at the dumpsite according to the SOP. I can assure you that this incident is not the usual procedure,” he said.
He explained that dog- catching involves several stages, from catching to transporting to keeping the dogs at the pound and finally, disposal.
“There are some weaknesses along the stages, and MCC will strive to handle every stage or step according to the SOP.”
He added that due to concerns in the stray dog population, the council’s focus was mainly on the front end, involving briefing and training its personnel on the removal of dogs.
“It is clear not enough attention was placed on disposal ( of the dogs). Due to the increase in the number of carcasses, some were not disposed according to SOP,” he said, while disclosing that as of yesterday, MCC personnel found about 10 dog carcasses that had not been properly disposed in the area. He said even though the number of ill- disposed carcasses compared to the total number of dogs disposed was small, MCC would not deny the fact that it failed to follow the SOP.
As an immediate measure, he said the council will maintain or improve the catching and transportation of dogs caught, and also improve conditions at the dog pound and conduct proper disposal of carcasses.
“We will clean up the surrounding by removing and burying all the carcasses or skeletons. We will also increase the number of cages so that in the event there are too many dogs arriving, at least it will not be so cramped,” he said.
Yii also said MCC will put up fences at the council’s temporary dog pound area as it is a restricted area involving an infectious disease. He said those working at the dog pound will also be provided with better protective equipment to ensure their safety.
Reminding the public not to enter the landfill of the temporary dog pound, he said it is a high-risk area where possible contamination or transferofmight happen. Also present at the press conference were MCC city services officer Arweena Iskandar and assistant environmental health officer Ting Tin Teck.