Malaysia is often regarded as a safe country, unlike others hit by disasters like earthquakes, typhoons, volcanic eruptions and tsunami, writes Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye in an opinion on the New Strait Times. However, this has given rise to a "lackadaisical attitude towards safety".
There is a need for the Malaysian government to focus on strengthening its disaster risk management with government funding, infrastructure and resources to foresee and respond to disasters more adequately. Malaysia does encounter floods and fires, and the questions is, how prepared is it to cope with such disasters when they occur? Are there sufficient flood drills, food preparation, mental, physical and emotional preparations?
Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye, Chairman, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.