KERTEH: More than 20 occupants of a ‘tahfiz’ religious school here will be relocated today as a precautionary measure following a gas pipeline leak involving PETRONAS Gas Berhad (PGB) at the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) project site on Saturday (Sept 20).
Kemaman OCPD Supt Mohd Razi Rosli said that although the religious school is located some two kilometres from the incident site, early action was necessary to ensure the safety of its occupants due to the potential risk of air pollution if wind directions shift.
"Although the location is quite far, we are concerned that the wind might carry contaminated air towards the school, which could have adverse effects. Therefore, we decided to relocate them earlier.
"The relocation will be carried out today before nightfall to avoid any risk. Our officers have already coordinated with the school management,” he told Bernama at the operations control centre at the site on Sunday (Sept 21).
Supt Razi also advised the public to refrain from approaching the site or attempting to view it up close, as this could expose them to the risk of inhaling contaminated air.
He further urged the public to avoid open burning, warning that the leaked gas could spread with the wind and create hazardous conditions.
"In addition, all activities in the nearby forest area should be temporarily halted,” he said.
Supt Razi reassured the public that the situation was under control and urged them not to panic but to comply with directives issued by the authorities.
On Saturday, police had closed the main Kerteh-Ranggon road to all vehicles following the leak of a PGB butane gas pipeline at the ECRL Section 5 site in Kerteh.
An emergency call was received at 9.53am reporting the leak of the flammable butane gas, which occurred about two kilometres from the main road and did not affect any villages or residential areas.- Bernama
