Operation Management

1.0 INTRODUCTION

1.1 Malaysia Climate :

Malaysia is geographically located in South East Asia, consisting of Peninsular

Malaysia that shares land and maritime borders with Thailand and Singapore, while East

Malaysia shares land and maritime borders with Brunei, Indonesia and Philippines.

Peninsular Malaysia is covered in forested mountain ranges running from north to south, with

on either side low-lying coastal plains. East Malaysia is situated on the island of Borneo,

divided between coastal regions, hills, valleys and a mountainous interior.

The regions equatorial climate is characterised by uniform temperatures, high

humidity and copious rainfall throughout the year. Although winds in Malaysia are generally

light, the country faces two monsoon seasons. The first ‘lighter’ monsoon season is from May

to September, known as the Southwest Monsoon. On the other hand, the Northwest

Monsoon from November to March brings heavier rainfall and winds. The east coast of

Peninsular Malaysia is exposed to the Northwest Monsoon, highly vulnerable to flooding and

landslides as a natural result.

1.2 Malaysia Flood Background :

Malaysia has a long history of floods as the country is exposed to monsoon rainfall all

year round. More than about 10% of the country is flood-prone. Rapid urbanization of

floodplains such as those in Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Sarawak, and upstream

development of hill land have rendered many areas vulnerable to hazardous flash floods.

In 1971, Kuala Lumpur was hit by major flash floods as several riverbanks broke due

to heavy monsoon rains. Over 180,000 people were displaced with 32 fatalities. The recent

century has seen several heavy flash floods occur in Shah Alam, Johor, Kelantan, Perlis,

Pahang and Terengganu. The last recorded major flash flood was in 2007, when several

states in Peninsular Malaysia were submerged under the Northwest Monsoon rains.

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2.0 AGENCIES INVOLVED

2.1 MERCY Malaysia :

It all began in 1999, amidst a raging war in Kosova where thousands of lives were lost

and suffering was widespread. Moved by the plight of countless innocent civilians, especially

women and children, Dr. Jemilah Mahmood, a Malaysian obstetrician-gynaecologist, sought

to offer her services voluntarily.

Finding no national organisation ready to support such international crises, together

with a handful of like-minded friends, the Malaysian Medical Relief Society – better known

today as MERCY Malaysia – was established. MERCY Malaysia aimed to provide a platform

for Malaysians to unite and take their role in the international humanitarian arena.

Dr. Jemilah Mahmood led the first mission to Kosova in June of 1999. Several

missions followed and teams were made up of Malaysians from all walks of life with the

single goal of helping others, regardless of race, religion, culture or boundary.

Over the last decade, the organisation has blossomed with teams sent to disaster-

stricken zones and programmes rolled out in various countries and in different disasters. As

a registered society under the Societies Act, MERCY Malaysia has over 500 members and is

supported by approximately 5,000 registered volunteers to date.

MERCY Malaysia sent seven teams (consisting medical surgeon and logistic

personnel) to Gaza in December 31, 2008 to conduct a rapid assessment of humanitarian

needs of the people affected by the conflict and focused on the supply of medical needs and

medicine to the embattled region.

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2.2 KTMB Malaysia :

Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) (Jawi:  ماليو تانه (كريتاڤي or Malayan

Railways Limited is the main rail operator in Peninsular Malaysia. The railway system dates

back to the British colonial era, when it was first built to transport tin. Previously known as the

Federated Malay States Railways (FMSR) and the Malayan Railway Administration (MRA),

Keretapi Tanah Melayu acquired its current name in 1962.[1] The organisation was

corporatised in 1992, but remains wholly owned by the Malaysian government. Fares are

generally reasonable, but the low frequency of the intercity trains does not usually make

them competitive with other modes of transportation.

The East Coast Line runs between Gemas railway station, in Negeri

Sembilan and Tumpat railway station, inKelantan. Gemas is the rail junction between the

West Coast line and the line itself. Like the West Coast Line, it is called the East Coast Line

(Malaysia) because it serves two of Peninsular Malaysia's East Coast states,

namely Pahang and Kelantan. In fact, it does not run along the coast at all and only meets

the South China Sea when it terminates in Tumpat railway station. It runs through the

interior, often through deep jungle, thus earning the nickname Jungle Railway. Terengganu

is the only state in Peninsular Malaysia not served by the KTM railway network (although

there are plans to expand the current Petronas Rail line to Kuantan and further on

to Mentakab), whereas Melaka is served by the Tampin railway station.

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3.0

DECEMBER

2014

FLOODS

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3.1 KTMB

Ten Keretapi Tanah Melayu (KTM) stations on the East Coast route cannot continue

to operate after being submerged in flood waters. KTM Berhad (KTMB) chairman Datuk

Nawawi Ahmad said the stations were in Chegar Perah, Merapoh, Gua Musang, Limau

Kasturi, Bertam Baharu, Kemubu, Dabong, Bukit Abu, Manek Urai and Krai. "Since the KTM

intercity service is still disrupted, passengers can reschedule their trip or get full refund for

the cancelled trip," he told a press conference here today. Nawawi said eight trips between

Chegar Perah and Tumpat had been cancelled since Dec 22, involving the Intercity trains

number 70, 71, 72 and 73, as well as Wau Express and Senandung Timuran Express trains

number 26, 27, 28 and 29. He said the mechanical system of the trains were also affected by

floods, involving eight locomotives, 19 coaches, one buffet (catering) and four generators.

However, he said losses involved and repair time had yet to be ascertained. In another

development, Nawawi said KTMB had also distributed financial aid of RM1,500, along with

food supply, for each of 177 of its staff who were affected by floods.

Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) has estimated its losses at almost RM250

million due to the damage to its railway infrastructure by the recent floods in east coast

states. Its chairman, Datuk Nawawi Ahmad, said KTMB would engage an independent

committee to determine the actual cost."We are in the process of checking the details. I just

had a discussion with the president (of the board of directors, Datuk Elias Kadir). He said we

may have to engage an independent body to estimate the cost of the damage. For now, we

are placing the figure at RM250 million. "This includes damage to railway quarters, signalling,

tracks, locomotives, machinery, rolling stock and so on," he told reporters after a first-hand

look at the damage at the Kuala Krai railway station today. KTMB had to cancel all train

services on the east coast route after flooding at several stretches of tracks and a number of

stations. Bernama found out that floodwaters entered several trains and washed away part of

the steel structure of a railway bridge in Kemubu, Kelantan. At the news conference, Nawawi

said the KTMB management would give priority to restoring the tracks and stations between

Gemas, Negeri Sembilan, and Gua Musang, Kelantan. "It will take a long time to restore the

railway route in Kelantan. So, we have asked the management to look into expediting the

resumption of operations between Gemas and Gua Musang. "We may require a long time to

rebuild the Kemubu bridge. We are also looking into providing bus services between the

badly-affected stations," he said. Nawawi said preference was given to the Gemas-Gua

Musang route because it was one of the busiest, used by thousands of workers, traders and

school-going children. He gave the assurance that the KTMB management would give

preference to the welfare of its employees and their families, particularly in terms of funds,

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housing and children's schooling. "Today, the management decided to pay employees the

ex-gratia of half-month salary or a minimum of RM500. Also, this week, we will give out

another RM500 as flood aid and RM1,000 through the KTMB welfare committee. "It is hoped

that the cash aid will help the employees take care of the schooling expenses of their

children. The government has also decided to bring forward the payment of the 1Malaysia

People's Aid (BR1M)," he said.

Nawawi said employees in the areas worst-affected by the floods might be relocated

in accordance with their scope of duties. He advised station masters in the badly-affected

areas to find temporary alternative quarters for their staff whose houses had been damaged

by the floods. Nawawi expressed his appreciation to the Royal Engineers Regiment for

helping flood victims and cleaning up the affected stations and clearing the tracks.

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3.2 MERCY

Peninsular Malaysia suffered from one of the worst floods in recent history during the

last two weeks of 2014. A record number of 232,913 evacuees were registered in various

evacuation centers across Peninsular Malaysia (as of 29 December 2014). However, the

actual number of those affected is believed to be higher as numerous people were unable to

reach evacuation centers and several evacuation centers were unregistered. The worst hit

states were Kelantan, Pahang and Terengganu, followed by Perak and Johor.

As of 29th December 2014, Kelantan recorded 160,000 registered evacuees,

followed by Pahang with 33,225, Terengganu with 31,820, Perak with 7,540 and Johor with

328 evacuees.

To date, MERCY Malaysia has responded to the flood in several areas Kelantan

(Pasir Mas, Tanah Merah and Rantau Panjang) and Terengganu (Kemaman and Hulu

Terengganu), as well as in Bota, Perak. The first phase of response was the deployment of

needs assessment teams to Pasir Mas in Kelantan, Hulu Terengganu and Kemaman in

Terengganu and Bota in Perak respectively as situations became critical. These teams,

consisting of MERCY Malaysia staff, medical volunteers and logisticians, conducted rapid

needs assessments of the situation in order to identify emergency response assistance.

Information gathered from the needs assessments and coordination meetings with several

partners; Majlis Keselamatan Negara (MKN), Jabatan Pertahanan Awam Malaysia (JPAM),

Ibu Pejabat Polis Kontingen (IPK), Jabatan Kebajikan Masyarakat and the District Health

Office, indicated that the most critical needs were food, water, shelter, hygiene supplies and

medical assistance.

There are 3 categories beneficiaries affected by the flood this year:

1.Flood affected evacuees who are staying at gazetted evacuation centres

2.Flood affected evacuees who are staying at non gazetted locations

3.Those not affected by the flood but whose homes are cut-off by the flood

In response, MERCY Malaysia in coordination with the above mentioned partners

provided food aid, distributed hygiene kits and carried out several Primary Mobile Health

Clinics simultaneously in the districts of Kelantan, Terengganu and Perak. Around four

hundred MERCY Malaysia volunteers, partners and donors took part in the flood operations.

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Since the middle of December, the Eastern Coast of Peninsular Malaysia has

experienced a non-stop downpour of torrential monsoon rains. The rains have caused severe

flash flooding and landslides, destroying buildings, roads and houses. Over 118,000 people

have been displaced to evacuation centres throughout Kelantan, Terengganu, Perlis, Johor,

Perak, Kedah and Pahang. The situation remains critical as floodwaters keep ascending and

food supplies are running low as local business are affected as well. In areas such as Pasir

Mas, Rantau Panjang, Besut, and Kuantan, thousands of people have been cut off from

transport networks as rivers have breached dangerous levels and landslides have destroyed

roads.

MERCY Malaysia has been closely monitoring and responding to the relentless

flooding. As of 3 pm, 25 December 2014, Kelantan is the worst hit state with over 4.5,000

people evacuated. MERCY Malaysia has distributed more than 3,000 hygiene kits and has

been providing medical support to existing local health services since the 18' of December.

IVIERCY livialaysia has also been providing food items to 5,915 beneficiaries in Pasir Mas

and Rantau Panjang as the persistent rains have depleted food stocks. In Terengganu,

where over 31,000 people have been displaced, MERCY Malaysia has distributed 1,400

hygiene kits to 4-9 evacuation centres. MERCY Malaysia is closely monitoring the situation in

Pahang where over 35,000 people have been evacuated.

MERCY Malaysia doctors, nurses and psychologists have been deployed to some of

the affected areas in Kelantan to provide medical support to local health services. Numerous

MERCY Malaysia volunteers have also assisted in the coordination and distribution of

hygiene kits and food parcels. Cleaning kits have also been prepositioned to assist families

to return to a normal life when floodwaters recede. MERCY Malaysia will continue to provide

assistance to those affected, as well as support to local emergency response services.

MERCY Malaysia would like to express its deepest appreciation to its supporters,

namely CIMB Foundation, Exxon Mobil, Maybank Foundation, TM Berhad, Fa EM Group and

Sime Darby Foundation, who have generously come forward to provide monetary

assistance, donation in kind as well as human resources. Our appreciation also goes to our

volunteers including the four-wheel drive groups who have assisted us.

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3.0 Ways/Suggestions Malaysia Can Be Better Prepared for Future Floods

OK, this is officially the worst flood disaster ever in Malaysian history! 21 people have

died, 250,000 lost their homes, damages cost RM1 billion, and water levels at Tangga Krai,

Kelantan reached 7.03 metres…yes, higher than the world’s tallest man who stands at

2.51m.

Fingers pointed here and there – the Kelantanese were blamed, the National Security

Council (NSC), Najib (even though he contracted E.coli, visiting the victims)….

We really feel for our fellow Malaysians. So here we are with an article, not to point

fingers at anyone, but just to bring up suggestions to be better prepared in future. At the end

of the day, no one expected this many people to be affected – in 2013,  it was 13,000

people – but if it happens again, here’s what we can do.

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1. Warn people sooner

How it was:

Victims were angry at the government’s slow response, it was reported.

A paper, Flood Disaster Management in Malaysia, said that we have an SMS alert that’s

being sent out to the police, army, Meteorological Department, and National Security

Division.

If it happens again:

An early warning is very effective as Japan’s example shows us. They’re always prepared for

tsunamis and earthquakes, why? Because they have a Warning Service which sends out an

alert, giving citizens a 10-minute head start to get to cover. All over the country they have

sensors to monitor seismic activity. Maybe we can install sensors to monitor water levels on

the ground too!

The paper suggested that SMS-es should be sent to warn the rakyat themselves too.

And maybe the SMS could include what to do and where to go so that evacuees are kept

informed at all times?

The Department of Irrigation and Drainage Malaysia (DID) is the one responsible for flood

forecasting and warning people. At the same time, we already know that floods usually occur

during monsoon seasons. There’s even a list of flood-prone zones in Malaysia on Wikipedia.

This shows us that it’s not a lack of information that is the problem.

Anyway, the cabinet listened to the Natural Disaster Management and Relief Committee’s

(NDMRC) proposal and agreed to implement an early warning system, so that’s a start.

2. Build more working shelters

How it was:

In her own words, Marina Mahathir stated that the real reason for the disaster is decades

of neglect and under-investment of evacuation facilities. Maybe there’s truth to it? Like for

example in Tenom, Sabah, apparently onlyone relief centre was open and housing 19

people, while 6 others were closed.

It’s hard to put an exact figure as to how many relief centres were opened by state NSCs in

total, because any building can be used as a makeshift shelter – schools, dewans, even a

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hospital – and they closed and opened on different days to accommodate the numbers. But

reports are numbering them according to districts or state. For example, in Kelantan,

about 125 shelters opened, in Terengganu 107, and Pahang 31, on Dec 24.

Looks pretty crowded here. Image from Hasnoor Hussain, The Malaysian Insider.

“One thing I can say from ground zero, our authorities are not prepared for a national

disaster. Will we ever will?” – Flood aid worker, The Malaysian Insider

If it happens again:

But why won’t the authorities build evacuation centres in places that the floods can’t get to?

As suggested in the flood management paper (in Point 1), don’t construct houses and

buildings in flood-prone areas, especially the evacuation centres. Why not build them on

higher ground?

But apparently they claim it’s not viable. Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim, Minister in the Prime

Minister’s Department said: “While we wait for the next flood, we will be losing out as the

centres will be empty.” He suggested that the centres should serve other purposes at other

non-flood times. Ya, that’s a good idea. Let’s do it la.

At other times, these centres can be used as multi-purpose halls for weddings, sports

centres, PT3 (ugh) exam halls, etc. Coincidentally that’s what’s proposed in the

Philippines too where floods happen quite often. Eh, those halls can rent for functions and

earn money, ok! Money which can be pumped back into flood funds.

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3. Dig more drains

How it was:

Climate change may cause unexpectedly heavy rains but poor drainage, especially in urban

areas, is what causes flooding, according to Centre for Environment, Technology and

Development Malaysia (Cetdem) Executive Director, Anthony Tan.

If it happens again:

The one ons thing to come out of this heavy raining is Selangor Dam’s level increase to 70%.

Hey, speaking of, how about connecting all drains to water catchment dams around

Malaysia? Then at least the water would have a big hole to contain it rather than flowing into

houses, kan? It’s all here in this article, Managing Flood Problems in Malaysia – engineering

detention ponds, channels, tunnels, widening and deepening rivers, etc.

4. Improve coordination and communication

How it was:

Relief and rescue work had a lot of hiccups for these 2 reasons:

Communication collapse

Transport problems

As for transport problems, it was difficult for volunteers to access flooded areas. “We could

not use heavy vehicles, the currents were too strong to use boats and the winds were too

turbulent to go by air,” Thajudeen added.

If it happens again:

So to work out a solution on communication, we can look to how the city of Saskatoon,

Canada handled a major power outage. They had an emergency call centre! We can build

communication centres here too, in places where floods can’t reach, like on the hills or

something.

At the very least, we can equip relief shelters with traditional communication tools. Not

smoke signal… we mean this:

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As for transport, Najib announced: “Besides that, procuring additional assets like boats and

high-performance trucks which can go into flooded areas will also be considered while this

will involve a high cost.” With this, we can look forward to help arriving sooner for the next

flood season…if the drainage is not already improved by then.

5. Invest in medical aid

How it was:

Earlier, The Star reported a depressing story about how a vegetable farmer witnessed his

neighbour having a heart attack while trying to escape the flood.

In Badang, two mothers’ went into labour but waited 2 hours for help that was delayed

apparently because VIPs were making official visits!

Then, the Universiti Sains Malaysia Hospital (HUSM) in Kubang Kerian ran out of blood

supply while doing its best to cope with 900 patients in its 767-bed facility.

That’s not even counting the potential water-borne diseases in the aftermath yet.

If it happens again:

As we talked about in our earlier article, teams of medical experts have to be on call 24-7.

The Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) for instance assembled its MMA Volunteer

Corp of doctors and medical students to help the victims.

Maybe someone could set up a computer system with all the medical organisations in

Malaysia and when an emergency happens, it could automatically alert everyone of their

services needed. The system can delegate locations to the them so that no area is short of

help. And hopefully there’ll be better coordination next time like prioritising getting women in

labour out than VIPs visiting in.

For the rest of us, we can donate towards clean water and hygiene kits that contain

toothbrushes and soapto help protect victims against leptospirosis, diarrhoea, skin disease,

and so on. Don’t send polystyrene stuff because even after washing, they can still bring

disease. Send proper utensils instead. Blood too is very necessary so if you could donate

yours, you will be helping to save lives. If yours is the rare type like A- or AB-, all the more

they need it.

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4.0 APPENDICES

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5.0 REFERENCES

1. http://cilisos.my/how-malaysia-can-be-better-prepared-for-floods-next-time/, retrieved on

22nd March 2015 (Sunday) at 10:46 AM

2. http://reliefweb.int/report/malaysia/malaysian-flood-emergency-response-donor-

report-2014, retrieved on 22nd March 2015 (Sunday) at 10:50 AM

3. http://www.mercy.org.my/ retrieved on 22nd March 2015 (Sunday) at 11:43 AM

4. Programme from Pengurusan Operasi dan Pengangkutan Banjir di Pantai Timur

dated at 28th February 2014 (Saturday).

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