PASIR GUDANG (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - The Johor government is not ruling out the possibility that it was bird droppings that caused the pollution at the Sekolah Kebangsaan Tanjung Puteri Resort.

State Health, Culture, and Heritage Committee chairman Mohd Khuzzan Abu Bakar said the school had been facing this problem in the last five years and some of its classrooms had not been used for a long time.

"We are not saying that there is no gas pollution issue."

"But we have to look at this (bird droppings) as one of the contributing factors that led to some of victims in the school having breathing difficulties and vomiting," he said during a visit to the school on Tuesday (July 23).

Johor Education, Human Resources, Science and Technology Committee chairman Aminolhuda Hassan said he hopes the Education Ministry will act quickly to clear up the droppings and repair the broken roof tiles where birds were nesting.

"It will take time because the class is located on the third floor, but we hope that it can be dealt with quickly so that these pupils here can use their classroom again," he said.

Meanwhile, Mr Mohd Khuzzan said classrooms located on the third and fourth floors of all schools around Pasir Gudang have been reopened since Sunday.

"The classrooms were closed as some gas was detected, but as of today, we have yet to receive any complaints from pupils regarding health issues," he said.

On Monday, nine new cases of people having breathing difficulties were reported - eight students and a teacher in Pasir Gudang.

Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad said the victims from four schools in the area were treated as outpatients at Pasir Gudang Health Clinic.

He added that the victims were from SK Tanjung Puteri Resort (three pupils), SK Kopok (two pupils), SK Taman Rinting 3 (two pupils and a teacher), and Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Pasir Gudang (one student).