MetMalaysia issues Level 1 heatwave alert for Sri Aman, Bintulu

KUCHING (July 27): The Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia) has issued a Level 1 (alert) heatwave warning for Sri Aman and Bintulu districts.

According to posts on the department’s official Facebook page, the alert first applied to both districts at 4pm on July 26 and was issued again at 6am today.

A Level 1 alert is issued when temperatures reach between 35 degrees Celsius and 37 degrees Celsius for three consecutive days.

An orange alert, or Level 2 warning, is issued when temperatures reach between 37 degrees Celsius and 40 degrees Celsius for three days in a row.

A red alert is issued when temperatures soar past 40 degrees Celsius for three consecutive days, indicating an extreme heatwave.

Apart from Sri Aman and Bintulu, other districts in Malaysia also issued the Level 1 alert were Kuala Krai, Larut and Matang in the Peninsula and Kota Marudu in Sabah.

Malaysia has been experiencing hot and dry weather since the start of this week.

MetMalaysia in its significant weather forecast issued on Monday had stated that based on analysis of weather models, the situation was expected to return to normal beginning July 27.

It had said the dry and hot weather in Malaysia was caused by tropical cyclones in the northeast of the Philippines and the South China Sea near Hainan Island.