80 per cent of firemen in Johor on standby for monsoon

ISKANDAR PUTERI: About 80 per cent of the Fire and Rescue Department personnel in Johor will be on standby during the upcoming monsoon season.

Its acting director Mohd Rizal Buang said there was no freeze on leave for JBPM personnel for this year.

“Unlike previously, the discretion to approve leave has been given to the states. For this year, about 80 per cent of our personnel will be on standby while 20 per cent can apply for leave but the approval will depend on the circumstances,” said Rizal.

He said the state’s 1,300 firemen were ready to face the upcoming monsoon season.

“Recently, the National Disaster Management Agency (Nadma) conducted a course for the relevant agencies to create better understanding and coordination among the agencies.

“The course was also aimed at making the incident management more efficient and to create a better rapport among the agencies,” said Rizal.

He said the department was also taking proactive measures to monitor the flood situation.

“For example, if it is raining for an extended period of time, we will deploy patrol teams to monitor the hot spots that have been identified so that immediate action can be taken.”

Rizal was speaking to the media after receiving a contribution from the Port of Tanjung Pelepas which was represented by its chief executive officer Marco Neelsen.

The contribution, which was in the form of equipment like chainsaws, hoses, nozzles, hydrant adaptors and safety cones, will be placed at the Iskandar Puteri fire station.

Neelsen said this was the first time that the company was contributing equipment directly to the department.

“However, our Fire Department has always supported and assisted JBPM in the past and will continue to do so in the future,” he said.