SIBU: Firefighters’ strength, including equipment has been beefed up as they go on a 24-hour shift in a race against time to keep the bush fires here under control.
Sibu Zone Fire and Rescue Department (Bomba) chief Abdul Mutalib Rashid said yesterday the rescheduling from 12-hour to 24-hour shift had enabled them to have more firemen on duty.
Abdul Mutalib pointed out that the fire-fighting capability at Sibu Central Station equipped with two fire engines had also been strengthened.
He added that their directive was to allow only 30 per cent of the personnel to go on leave for the Hari Raya AidilFitri but several of them reported for duty even with the celebration going on, he noted.
“Aided by the rain in some parts here yesterday (Tuesday), the situation here is now under control. Our firemen are on standby and ready to respond.
“We have sub-divided out our (fire) engines to enable us to better respond to this kind of situation. Usually, Central Station has two engines and we have added two more vans, pumps and other equipment,” Abdul Mutalib said when met at his Hari Raya AidilFitri open house at Bomba quarters here.
According to him, the worst bush fires so far occurred in Bukit Lima and Sentosa.
“A day before Hari Raya, I was told there were over 20 calls (about bush fire) a day in Sibu alone.”
Meanwhile, Sarawak Bomba recorded 1,319 cases of open burning until July 24 this year.
Last Saturday, Sarawak Bomba recorded 47 calls across the state, the most number of calls on open burning received in a single day for the month of July.
Meanwhile, Abdul Mutalib attributed the causes of bush fires partly to the dry weather and human factor.
“Then, there were those who threw cigarette butts indiscriminately,” he said.
Abdul Mutalib thus called for public cooperation to keep bush fires at bay, adding that the El-Nino was nothing new.
He advised residents to help extinguish small fires near their compound and not wait for help to arrive but advised the public to immediately call Bomba if they spotted bush fires.
“Sometimes, we receive five to seven calls at one time at different locations where we need to channel our fire engines,” he said.
Members of Sibu Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCCI) led by their president Hu Yu Siong were among those who visited Abdul Mutalib.