Out of the water and into the fire
With a heatwave warning for the coming days, firefighters involved in flood-related rescues are now keeping watch on peatlands and other fire-prone areas. Climate experts say efforts to tackle open burning in the region must be strengthened.
JOHOR BARU: Firefighter Mohd Khairul Sufian Dahari and his team were once battling against a forest fire for seven days. They had not even finished dousing the fire when they were called away to rescue flood victims.
After saving the victims, they found themselves stranded, in need of rescue; the road leading back to their base was flooded.
Tackling both fires and floods was nothing new for the members of Sebana Cove Fire and Rescue Department station in Pengerang, Johor.
The station is surrounded by more than 1,000ha of peatland – including the oil palm plantation – which, as the weather gets hotter, are susceptible to catching fire. Once it burns, the flames can simmer for months.
Meanwhile, nearby Kota Tinggi is known to be a flood-prone area.
Assistant Fire Superintendent Mohd Khairul, the Sebana station chief, said they had been fighting for a week to put out fires at the Sebana Cove-punggai bypass on March 4 last year.
“But heavy rain fell in Kota Tinggi that evening. We were asked to send our boat to help with the rescue work.
”We were supposed to return to our base at 8am the next day but the road back was cut off by floods, so we only managed to return on March 6,” he recalled.
In October, the team faced one of the most challenging forest fires, stamping out the blaze at a 32ha site after nine days.
“We were lucky as it was raining heavily during the last day of the incident, which contributed to the success,” explained Mohd Khairul.
Twin natural disasters – fire and floods in the same place and at the same time – are no strange occurrences.
In 2023, the world’s hottest year, different places on the planet had to deal with fires and floods simultaneously due to climate change, which was exacerbated by the El Nino phenomenon.
In Malaysia, as the weather turns from the wetter northeast monsoon to warmer and drier days in the beginning of the year, authorities, who had been helping flood victims, will now be keeping watch on fire-prone areas.
Metmalaysia has already issued a Level One hot weather warning for three areas in Kedah: Pokok Sena, Pendang and Baling.
The Level One or alert level heatwave warning is issued when daily temperatures range between 35ºc and 37ºc for at least three consecutive days.
The weather is turning hotter, likely due to the possibility of El Nino being heightened between November and January.
Peatlands, the most fire-prone areas in the country, are especially vulnerable during this dry season.
Taming fires in such areas, as such, has proved to be a challenging task for firemen.
For Asst Supt Mohd Khairul and his team, making their way through the peatland was no walk in the park.
At times, they had to wade through a swamp, which was waist-deep, just to get to where the fire was.
“We deployed our AW139 helicopter to help conduct water drops.
“We also got help from the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency’s amphibious Bombardier CL415MP aircraft,” he said.
Last year, the station received 51 calls involving forest fires, Asst Supt Mohd Khairul noted.
One of the main reasons for the fires, he said, was the landowners’ irresponsible action of attempting to clear their farm by burning away grass and leaves.
“It was only when the fire was out of their control that they called us for help,” he said.
“We also believe that other causes could be smokers who tossed their cigarette butts outside their vehicles.
“The forest fire in October started from a roadside blaze that was fanned by the strong wind,” Asst Supt Mohd Khairul added.