KUALA LUMPUR: The Central Disaster Management Committee (CDMC) will convene and come up with short-term and long-term flood mitigation measures once the Northeast Monsoon ends.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob, in a statement, said the Environment and Water Ministry had proposed to ramp up drainage and coastal infrastructures.
"This includes measures to raise level of protection and recurrence of drainage and coastal infrastructure design from 100 years Average Recurrence Interval (ARI) to 200 years ARI.
"Several improvements are being made under the Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia)," he said after chairing the Special Meeting of the Northeast Monsoon Disaster Post-Flood Management Task Force today.
The improvements suggested by MetMalaysia include Centralised Flood Siren Warning System coordinated by the Irrigation and Drainage Department (DID) and added more sirens equipped with voice warnings at flood-risk locations to warn residents to evacuate.
Closed circuit cameras can also be installed to monitor river water levels and alert the residents to evacuate once the rivers reaches the danger level.
Other improvements to be made are on the Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) as well as Communication, Education and Public Awareness (CEPA) information dissemination and flood management training by the Communications and Multimedia Ministry.
The Communications and Multimedia Ministry has been busy disseminating information since the monsoon started and intensified its efforts when a second wave of flood was predicted to prep the people and the country to keep things under control.
The prime minister said the Communications and Multimedia Ministry had rolled out communication strategies, involving the announcement of warnings and updates, government assistance announcements, identifying issues being raised and coordinating with various agencies as well as detecting false news and promptly publish disclaimers.
"The platforms being used are the mass media, social media, Information Department channels, advocacy, publications and engagement efforts.
"All the initiatives by the Northeast Monsoon Disaster Post-Flood Management Task Force will be monitored to ensure that the national disaster preparedness and management mechanisms are always streamlined and at the optimum level," Ismail Sabri added.