Ting (right) and Law look at the haze situation from the Tudan Watch Tower.
MIRI: Piasau assemblyman Datuk Sebastian Ting is urging private landowners affected by bush and peat soil fires to deploy more manpower to help firefighting efforts.
He said having more people on the ground would help efforts to contain the situation on the ground, especially in badly-hit areas such as Kuala Baram.
“In addition to manpower, these private companies can also contribute their heavy machinery because the availability of such equipment can also help in the effort,” he told reporters after visiting the Tudan Watch Tower here for an update on the latest situation yesterday.
He added that police, military, Rela and Civil Defence Force personnel were also being deployed to help combat the wildfires.
Present with Ting was Fire and Rescue Department (Bomba) Miri chief Law Poh Kiong, who said Bomba would need about 100 people to help put out fires in Kuala Baram.
“As of noon today (yesterday), we have identified 684 hectares of peat land affected here, which is equivalent to 1,500 football fields.
‘Today (yesterday), the fire spread to about 70 hectares, further worsening the
already-severe haze condition,” said Law.
The Air Pollutant Index (API) reading showed the air quality at Institute of Industrial
Training (ILP) Miri had reached hazardous level, recording a reading of 396 as at 5pm yesterday.
SK Kuala Baram 2 and Miri city recorded moderate API readings of 84 and 96, respectively.