Folks in Miri breathing smog due to forest fires

Huge fires raging in Kuala Baram.

MIRI: Unscrupulous people are resorting to open burning during the night to clear forest land either for agricultural purposes or to get rid of plantation refuse.

Such illegal open burning activities are posing a serious threat to the environment and human health.

Residents have to breathe in smog for long periods of time especially during the night and early morning due to incidents of open burning in northern Sarawak.

The Fire and Rescue Department is working round-the-clock to extinguish the fires but their attempts are being hampered by the scale of the raging fires as well as poor road access.

State assistant minister for communications Datuk Lee Kim Shin (pic) said the Department of Environment will request for cloud seeding operations.

"We will need to carry out cloud seeding urgently. This will hopefully induce rain to help snuff out the numerous fires that are raging in various parts of Kuala Baram district and the southern parts of Miri district near Marudi and the Niah areas," he said during a visit to the Tudan Watchtower here.

He also called for stricter surveillance to nab the culprits responsible for these open burnings.