PORT KLANG: The authorities are trying to find out whether a plot of land near here is a buffer zone, peat soil forest reserve or private property.
It is the site of an illegal dump where a fire has been burning for four days.
Selangor Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari said this was because irresponsible parties could have trespassed on the land in Jalan Saim in Kampung Rantau Panjang.
“I believe there are elements of encroachment into the land.
“We have to double check because, to my knowledge, the fire could have taken place on a buffer zone and we are in the midst of determining that.
“We are still trying to identify the irresponsible parties who are most likely to be illegal foreigners who had trespassed into the land, with intent to develop it and caused the fire.
“That is peat soil so the shortcut was to set it on fire (to clear it) and let the blaze spread.
“What more with our scorching weather, it is hard to extinguish the fire,” he said today.
Amirudin said action could be taken against the landowner if he was found to have flouted the law by allowing rubbish to be dumped there.
He said he was waiting for a detailed report on the incident to be submitted by the Selangor Natural Disaster Management Unit.
The menteri besar said this after attending a Hari Raya open house organised by Port Klang state assemblyman Azmizam Zaman Huri.
Amirudin said firefighters from the Selangor Fire and Rescue Department were working hard to douse the flames on the 1.2ha plot.
The department’s zone chief, Samsol Maarif Saibani, said they had put out 70 per cent of the fire which broke out on Thursday evening.
He expects it to be put out by tomorrow.
It was reported that firefighting efforts are being hampered by high winds, dry conditions and the presence of highly-flammable materials as electrical wire and recyclable items.