Total of 11 active earthquake fault zones mapped nationwide, says Malaysian minister
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Plantation and Commodities Minister Johari Abdul Ghani said six active faults were identified in the peninsula.
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION: PIXABAY
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KUALA LUMPUR - A total of 11 active fault zones have been mapped nationwide, including several in Peninsular Malaysia, said Plantation and Commodities Minister Johari Abdul Ghani.
He said the Minerals and Geoscience Department conducted the mapping between 2016 and 2020.
He said six active faults were identified in the peninsula.
They are Bukit Tinggi in Pahang, Bokbak in Kedah–Perak, Terengganu in Terengganu, Banding in Perak, Kuala Pilah in Negeri Sembilan and Mersing in Johor.
He said Sarawak has the Tubau Fault in Miri, adding that Sabah has four faults – Lobou Lobou and Mensaban in Ranau, and Lahad Datu and Tabin in Lahad Datu.
He said six active fault movement benchmark stations have been installed in Sabah.
He added 47 passive stations operate across Pahang, Selangor, Perak, Negeri Sembilan, Sarawak and Sabah and said plans are under way to expand fault mapping and benchmark coverage to other high risk areas, including Johor.
Datuk Seri Johari then said seismic hazard maps guide local authorities and engineers.
He added they are advised to follow the Malaysia National Annex to Eurocode 8 when designing earthquake resilient buildings.
On early warning systems, he said earthquakes cannot be predicted, but tsunamis can be detected after undersea quakes.
He said MetMalaysia operates 80 seismographic stations nationwide supported by 323 international stations.
He said alerts are issued within eight minutes for quakes of magnitude 3.0 or higher adding upgrades under the 13th Malaysia Plan aim to cut alert time to six minutes by 2026.
He said improvements to 12 seismic monitoring stations are also in progress.
“These measures form a comprehensive strategy to enhance national preparedness and protect communities in seismically active areas,” he said.
He was responding to Malaysian politician Doris Sophia Anak Brodi.
She asked about steps taken following several minor quakes in Johor. THE STAR/ ASIA NEWS NETWORK
