NIOSH urges better safety and health issues to reduce disaster risk

KUALA LUMPUR, July 14 (Bernama) -- Malaysia must always focus its attention to manage safety and health issues as well as to minimize or reduce disaster risk in the interest of public safety and people's wellbeing, the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) said.


Its chairman, Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye said the nation's experience with tsunami in 2004, frequent occurrence of landslides, hill slope collapse and sinkholes indicates the need to take all appropriate measures to reduce the risk of disaster.


"Although we do not have earthquake and typhoon as faced by neighbouring countries, we have our fair share of natural disasters though on a smaller scale.


"As such it is in our interest to enrich or enhance our efforts to minimise our disaster risk," he said in a statement here.


Lee said, to work towards risk reduction, it is essential that safety audits are done more frequently by the various authorities of our hill slopes, rivers, sea front and other risky area especially those near human settlements and tourist attractions.


Equally important is to intensify checks on the natural environment to assess any potential risk that could cause disaster, have strong maintenance culture on infrastructural development in the country and to improve or upgrade all early-warning systems in respect of tsunami and any other natural disaster from time to time.


"There is also a need for Malaysians to be actively involved in safety drills like what is being done in Japan and South Korea, so that the people will be able to better cope with any disaster if it comes, Lee added.


-- BERNAMA