KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 26 — Flooding during the northeast monsoon no longer depends on rainfall, but other factors, too, said Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia) deputy director-general (operations) Ambun Dindang.
He said rapid development and changes to the terrain could cause different effects, even with the exact amount of rainfall as years ago.
“The area might flood or not… depending on what happens to the terrain, including development, population density and drainage changes,” he said last night on Bernama TV’s Ruang Bicara segment titled “Understand the Monsoon, a Nation under Alert”.
Climate change and global warming also affect existing weather systems, causing the frequent occurrence of extreme and intensive weather.
“Every degree of global warming can cause the atmosphere to store 7 per cent more humidity, leading to heavy downpours,” he said, adding that rising sea temperatures could also lead to coral bleaching, and melting ice caps and glaciers would cause the sea level to rise, and cause further implications to a coastal country like Malaysia.
“We see in terms of strength and increased frequency of typhoons hitting the Philippines and Vietnam recently, that is also an effect of global warming and climate change,” Ambun said, as he stressed that MetMalaysia would continue to strengthen all three components of its early warning system — data gathering, data processing, and broadcasting information — to ensure the country’s readiness is improved and action can be taken before heavy rain.
The early warning produced by weather models are within a three-day period, but information will always be updated whenever atmospheric changes are detected, he said.
“Three days before the incident is the best believable warning, but the model changes daily. At best, we can get early information out so other agencies have enough time to prepare,” he said, advising the public to be more aware of current weather alerts, especially those living in flood-prone areas, and to obey authorities’ instructions.
Ambun encouraged people to seek weather updates on the MetMalaysia website, its social media channels, and the MyCuaca app.
