BUKIT MERTAJAM, July 3 — The Fire and Rescue Department (JBPM) is all set in its preparation of personnel and logistics for the states facing severe weather forecasts of thunderstorms, heavy rains and strong winds.

JBPM operations department director Datuk Ahmad Izram Osman said 4,169 officers and personnel are on standby in Perlis, Kedah, Penang, northern Perak, Terengganu and Kelantan which are expected to experience westerly winds from July 1 to 5.

"The Malaysian Meteorological Department has issued a westerly wind weather warning for the period July 1 to July 5. So, we have taken immediate steps to monitor the situation and analyse the data from the department.

"The Safety Water And Rescue Team (Swart) is conducting frequent patrols of the potential areas which could be hit by severe storms, especially in the East Coast,” he said at a press conference after the JPBM state operations directors’ meeting, here today.

Ahmad Izram advised the public to refrain from going to the beach and for the fishermen to stay home during any stormy weather.

He said all the relevant machinery and facilities nationwide are on 24-hour standby to provide any form of assistance if the westerly winds hit.

"So far the Penang fire and rescue department has received and successfully handled 13 emergency calls related to strong winds which caused landslides, fallen trees and flash floods, since July 1,” he said.

On another note, he said that the department is also conducting fire safety inspections at all the polling and counting stations of the six states facing polls soon.

"We have yet to receive the exact number of polling and counting stations, so we are basing it on the GE 15 (15th general election) numbers for now,” he said.

The six states going to the polls are Kedah, Penang, Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, Kelantan and Terengganu. — Bernama