Fire, floods threaten heritage city of George Town

GEORGE TOWN: Fire and floods are the twin disasters which may affect the heritage city of George Town in Penang.

George Town World Heritage Inc (GTWHI) general manager Ang Ming Chee said the proximity of heritage buildings to one another posed a fire hazard.

She said another issue faced by the Unesco recognised area of some 259ha was that of flooding.

She said the community needed to be involved in the disaster risk reduction (DDR) plans as well as coordinating disaster management plans at various government levels.

For example, Ang said some know about the dangers fire posed but may not be prepared due to a lack of fire extinguishers in the office.

She also expressed her thanks to the state for improving the drainage systems in the city and urged the public not to block the drains with rubbish.

“Do not block the drains,” she said in a press conference today after opening a DRR workshop for heritage cities in Southeast Asia (SEA) and small island developing states.

The GTWHI and Unesco Jakarta hosted workshop aims to develop strategies in three pilot sites - Malacca and George Town (Malaysia), Jakarta Old Town (Indonesia) and Levuka Port Town (Fiji) - to reduce disaster risk.

On the alleged lack of a DDR plan for George Town, Ang said the federal, state and local governments have contingency plans.

“What we want to do now through this workshop is to have a specific plan for George Town,” she added.