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Malaysia’s heatwave expected to last until June, with haze likely to follow [1]
['Malaysia Correspondent']
Date: 2023-05-05 17:45:00+08:00
KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysia’s current heatwave is expected to last until June, with high temperatures felt throughout the country, said the national meteorological department.
It is forecast to be followed by slightly below-average rainfall until September.
Haze is also likely to return from June to September as a result of the drier conditions and hot weather, said Natural Resources, Environment and Climate Change Minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad.
“The risk of local haze or transboundary haze returning is higher due to uncontrolled fire in the forest or peatland as weather conditions become warmer during the period,” he told The Straits Times.
In Malaysia, a heatwave alert is issued when the average daily maximum temperature exceeds 37 deg C for three consecutive days.
In April, the Malaysian Meteorological Department issued heatwave alerts in several states, with the highest temperature recorded at 38.4 deg C in Malaysia’s central Negeri Sembilan state on April 22.
Due to the heatwave, the Education Ministry on Wednesday ordered all outdoor activities in schools nationwide to be temporarily suspended.
On April 25, an 11-year-old boy died of heatstroke and severe dehydration in the east coast state of Kelantan. The same day, a 19-month-old toddler died of severe dehydration, also in Kelantan.
Dr Daleleer Kaur Randawar, a mother of two schoolgoing children, said children are particularly vulnerable when they are exposed to high temperatures, and necessary measures must be taken by the ministry to ensure the safety of children.
“If required, it would be good to revert back to blended learning or online classes during this heatwave,” said the 48-year-old associate professor at Universiti Teknologi Mara.
Ms B.R. Dhillon, 37, who works as a chef, said: “This is the first time that I felt that Kuala Lumpur was scorching hot after coming back from Manchester. It feels like a sauna.”
Meteorological Department deputy director-general Mohd Hisham Anip said the heatwave is likely to end by June as the high temperatures will gradually drop by then.
“The temperature will still be hotter than normal between June and September. But it will not be as hot as in April and May, which are the hottest months of Malaysia historically,” he said.
He added that the mercury is expected to hover between 32 deg C and 35 deg C during this period, higher than the usual temperatures of between 32 deg C and 33 deg C.
He said Malaysia’s monthly rainfall is expected to reduce by 20 per cent to 40 per cent during the June to September period in some parts of the country, compared with the average rainfall in other months.
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[1] Url:
https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/malaysia-s-heatwave-expected-to-last-until-june-with-haze-likely-after-that
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