Sarawak braces for prolonged dry spell until August, with rising wildfires, water shortages and state agencies mobilised to manage worsening drought conditions.
MIRI: The hot and dry spell currently spreading across Sarawak is expected to persist until August, state authorities have warned.
A high-level meeting of the Miri branch of the State Disaster Management Committee (SDMC) was informed that weather patterns provided by meteorological agencies indicate that the “dry-hot phenomenon” gripping the state will be continuous.
“It appears that the hot and dry weather, characterised by reduced rainfall over Sarawak, may continue until August this year.
“All government departments and agencies have been instructed to prepare for any eventualities. The top priority currently is the dousing of hotspots and managing large-scale forest fires and wildfires,” the meeting was told.
Reports stated that in March alone, Miri recorded four active hotspots. The meeting was chaired by Miri Division Disaster Management Committee Chairman Galong Luang.
Agencies including water supply authorities, the Natural Resources and Environment Board (NREB), the Drainage and Irrigation Department, local district councils and the State Welfare Department have been directed to finalise contingency plans as the worsening drought threatens severe water shortages.
Drought has already impacted various regions of Sarawak, even as authorities battle raging forest fires across the state.
Earlier this week, the State Ministry for Women, Family and Community Development directed the Welfare Department to begin distributing bottled drinking water to numerous villages in the central Sarawak district of Dalat.
Minister Datuk Seri Fatimah Abdullah confirmed that reports of drinking water shortages among the rural population in Dalat prompted the move.
“The Welfare Department has started delivering bottled water to residents in Ulu Boah, where they are facing serious shortages. We have received similar reports from other areas regarding dwindling water reserves and shallowing rivers,” she said during a community event with the Civil Defence Force in Dalat.
Fatimah added that the Civil Defence Force ground teams remain on standby as first responders to assist in water deployment efforts.
Sarawak is simultaneously battling a surge in wildfires. Last week, the state was placed on “red alert” for regional haze following the detection of worsening forest fires both within Sarawak and in the neighbouring Kalimantan province of Indonesian Borneo.
The NREB issued a public statement confirming that 18 major wildfires were detected within Sarawak last month, while 241 were identified in Kalimantan.
“The NREB has activated haze operation centres throughout Sarawak following these detections,” the board stated. Last week, forest fires and wildfires were reported in 11 districts across the state.