KUALA LUMPUR, July 2 — Residents near the Pasir Gudang industrial area are upset and frustrated by officials’ inability to pinpoint the source of air pollution believed to be responsible for making dozens of students ill and shuttering hundreds of schools last week.
The Straits Times reported that some residents have even banded together to form an ad hoc group to share and discuss the latest information, including speculation that the clean-up of toxic waste from the Sungai Kim Kim incident some months ago is causing the current incident.
“We noticed the students always fell ill... between 9am and 11am, and it always happened a day after it has rained.
“We presume that chemical molecules or vapours rise in the morning, which is why children who have their classes on the top floor of the school buildings are affected,” said Fauzi Rohani, 54, president of the residents group.
Housewife Azalila A. Samad, 46, told the Singapore-based paper that she decided not to let two of her five children attend school until the situation clears up. The school is just across the road from their house while her other three older children attend a school further away from Pasir Gudang.
“I talked to the school my children go to, but they also can’t do much and don’t know much. So I have to resort to taking action on my own.
“I took my kids and went to stay with my husband, who is currently working in Bangi, Selangor, for about a week. I don’t care if my children miss school, I am not going to risk my children’s health until the authorities have some answers,” said Azalila in Taman Pasir Putih on Sunday.
Her 11-year-old daughter, Nur Kasih Farhana Mohd Kamil, had been affected by the Sungai Kim Kim toxic waste incident three months ago when she experienced nausea and headaches; she reported the same symptoms last Monday after returning from school.
Her younger brother, Muhammad Haidar, eight, was not affected in either incident.
Schools in Pasir Gudang reopened last Sunday after being closed for three days after more than 100 students from over 30 schools experienced the same breathing difficulties and nausea since June 20.
As soon as they reopened, however, some 273 people reportedly suffered breathing difficulties and vomiting at 27 schools.
Yesterday, Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change Minister Yeo Bee Yin said the incident was unrelated to Sungai Kim Kim, judging by the geographical spread of the victims as well as their blood tests but she has made it mandatory for schools in the area to have gas detectors.
She added that the companies will also provide face masks to students at their schools every time a pollution incident occurs.
Authorities are also monitoring the air quality at 85 schools, focusing on the air quality on the third and fourth floors of the school buildings.
There are currently 2,005 factories in Pasir Gudang, with 250 of them chemical plants.
