Radio gaga

On the same wavelength: (Standing, from left) Zanirul Akhmal Zanirun, Kuala Lumpur DX Team president Mohd Faiz Shaari, ham enthusiasts Lucius Solomon @ Baharuddin and Hamdan Abu, as well as Weerut Srhidhara (seated, left) and Reuben Chirng Chern Han at the Malaysian Amateur Radio Transmitter’s Society emergency communication centre in Seri Kembangan, Selangor. — YAP CHEE HONG/The Star

The voice from the incoming signal was scratchy at best as the battery in the caller’s walkie-talkie was about to die.

But amateur radio hobbyist Zanirul Akhmal Zanirun, then a volunteer at the National Emergency Communication Centre set up in Angkasapuri, Kuala Lumpur during the 2014 to 2015 floods, heard the message that was coming in from Pahang loud and clear.