Minor quake, but a major wake-up call

SEGAMAT in Johor was jolted by a small earthquake recently, a rare occurrence that most Malaysians of our generation have never felt – the last Johor tremor was reported 83 years ago.

For most of us, the tremor on Aug 24 was our first brush with a natural phenomenon that occurs more often in Indonesia and Japan, among others.

These two countries are part of the Pacific Ring of Fire, a horseshoe-shaped zone around the Pacific Ocean where volcanic activity and frequent earthquakes occur due to tectonic plate movements. Malaysia sits just outside the ring.

While Peninsular Malaysia has experienced minimal local seismic activity, it has felt the effects of major movements across the Strait of Malacca.

The Indian Ocean earthquake off the coast of Sumatra that triggered the devastating Boxing Day tsunami in 2004, for instance, shook high-rises in Penang and Kuala Lumpur.

The Segamat quake only measured 4.1 on the Richter scale, and was followed by a series of aftershocks ranging from 2.5 to 3.4 in magnitude.

That’s classified as minor to light movement, akin to a heavy lorry passing by.

On their own, such quakes rarely cause damage. But what made these tremors different was their origin: not distant Sumatra but right in our own backyard.

We believe they serve as a clear reminder that Malaysia, though considered a low risk for earthquakes, is not entirely risk-free.

So just as many of us know what to do when floods threaten, so too should we be equipped with basic knowledge of how to act during an earthquake.

There’s a drill used by emergency preparedness experts in the West, for instance, called “Drop, Cover and Hold On”, which involves getting as low to the ground as possible, finding something sturdy like a table to get under – alternatively, cover your head and neck with your arms – and holding in position.

This could be practised in schools alongside fire safety drills.

Another easy safety measure is to require all commercial and residential buildings to post clear signs of evacuation routes to a designated safe gathering spot.

It is reassuring to know that since 2016, all high-rise buildings have been required to meet construction standards capable of withstanding a magnitude seven earthquake.

The Housing and Local Government Ministry has promised that random audits will be conducted to ensure compliance – an important move because laws and codes are only as strong as their enforcement.

Town planners, architects, local councils and the Public Works Department have a role to play.

They have to re-examine the safety of as many buildings as possible, especially in Johor, Negri Sembilan, Pahang and Sabah, states that have recorded tremors and quakes the most often.

The urgency is to ensure that structures built more than a decade ago are safe and secure.

The science matters, too.

Malaysia’s seismological network has grown since the 1980s, but it largely remains confined to Johor, Negri Sembilan, Pahang and Sabah.

What would be beneficial is to have more seismographs and GPS monitoring stations in more areas so that we can update hazard maps and understand which soils amplify shaking. Without such data and records, policies will always remain guesswork.

Education is another pillar.

Introducing simple awareness programmes in schools on how people in Indonesia, Japan or the Philippines cope with tremors would normalise the idea that shaking can be met with calm action rather than fear.

Johor’s jolt is a reminder that we need to anticipate and prepare in advance.

We cannot ignore it. We need to brace Malaysia and Malaysians for the possibility of something bigger in the future.

To ignore it is to squander the warning.