KUALA KEDAH: Business and tourist activities along the coastal areas of Kampung Kuala Tebengau Tepi Laut have come to a halt after the mangrove beaches here were infested with caterpillar-like insects.
Checks by the New Straits Times at the village found that the typically lush, green mangrove trees along the coast now exhibit a lifeless brown shade, a result of the infestation.
Villagers said the caterpillars appeared a few days ago, forcing businesses to shut down as their cafes were crawling with the insects.
Beachside restaurant owner, Zailila Had, 39, said that she has already suffered loses over RM5,000 due to the infestation as she was forced to shut her restaurant for the week.
She said that she couldn't continue her business as her restaurant was filled with the insects despite her efforts to clear her kitchen and tables.
"As my restaurant is surrounded by the mangrove trees, it is infested with caterpillars that are munching on the mangrove tree leaves here.
"I tried spraying poison on the caterpillars but they keep coming back. Even pest controllers told me that the infestation is too much for them to handle.
"The caterpillars can cause itchy rashes and many customers would be disgusted to eat with these caterpillars around.
"I have now choice but to close the restaurant for now," she said when met at her restaurant here today.
Another restaurant owner, Yunus Saad, 59, said l the last caterpillar infestation in 2016 was on a much larger scale and affected the whole village.
Yunus expressed concerns that an infestation of a similar scale would happen, ruining villager's crops and causing health issues to residents.
"The infestation we have now is still at the early stages. Seven years ago, the infestation affected the whole village. I hosted a wedding ceremony for my son at the time but it was ruined by the critters.
"These insects are relatively harmless but they can cause rashes and would crawl up vehicles, houses and inside people's clothes," he added.
He pleaded help from any relevant agencies to help control the infestation before the situation worsens.
Harisun Sharrif, 69, a local, shared her unfortunate experience of being hospitalised during the 2016 infestation.
"I was hospitalised for a whole week. It started with itchy rashes, then I caught a high fever and breathing complications. I wouldn't want to go through that again," she added.
Meanwhile, Kota Star Malaysian Civil Defence Force officer Abdul Haliq Rafiq Mokhtar said that the agency would conduct monitoring operations in the village before deciding on the appropriate course of action.
The State Agriculture Department also confirmed that it will despatch its biosecurity experts to conduct inspections at the mangrove forests.