Pasir Gudang blaze believed sparked by attempt to recover scrap metal

PASIR GUDANG: A fire that raged overnight at an open coastal area in Kampung Pasir Putih is believed to have started when a pile of wood bound with metal was set alight, possibly to recover scrap metal, before spreading to nearby fibreglass floats.

Johor Fire and Rescue Department director Siti Rohani Nadir said preliminary information from witnesses indicated that several men from a nearby village had set fire to the wood pile to retrieve the metal.

She clarified that the fire broke out along Jalan Muhibbah and not at a rubbish disposal site, as previously reported.

"The fire spread to a nearby pile of fibreglass floats, a combustible material that contributed to the spread of the blaze," she told the New Straits Times today.

The nearest homes were about 15 metres from the affected area.

The department received an emergency call at 10.04pm yesterday, and firefighters from the Pasir Gudang and Johor Jaya fire and rescue stations arrived seven minutes later.

The firefighting operation was still ongoing today, with no casualties reported.

Siti Rohani said there was no immediate need to deploy the department's hazardous materials team to detect gas or chemical substances at the scene.

She also said the fire had not contributed to Pasir Gudang's elevated Air Pollutant Index (API), which stood at 182 at 11am.