THE whole of Kelantan runs the risk of being affected if the authorities do not swiftly handle the pollution at Sg Aring in Kuala Koh near Gua Musang, said a state opposition leader.

Hundreds of people, who depend on Sg Aring for their water supply, are in danger of being poisoned if the authorities don’t quickly identify the toxic chemical which polluted the river and allegedly claimed 14 lives.

Kelantan Pakatan Harapan leader Husam Musa said the situation can get out of hand as the river flows to Sg Kelantan which runs through the state and is a main water source.

Initial reports indicate that Sg Aring had been contaminated with arsenic, Husam also told The Malaysian Insight.

He said the authorities must get to the bottom of this by conducting blood tests on the Orang Asli patients currently warded at several hospitals in the state.

“It was previously reported that Sg Aring was contaminated with arsenic. This is dangerous as the river flows to Sg Kelantan.

“We will see a bigger problem if the toxic chemical is not determined. The whole state will be affected.”

Husam added that he sent a letter to the state Mineral and Geoscience Department to ask for a list of mining companies operating in the Kuala Koh area.

“I asked the department to submit the list of factories, both legal and illegal, along the river to ascertain what type of chemicals they use in their production,” the former Kelantan exco said.

Asked on the efforts taken by the PAS-run state government to counter the situation, Husam said the administration is still discussing the matter.

Arsenic is found in many minerals, usually in combination with sulphur and metals. It is used in the production of pesticides, treated wood products and insecticides.

Health Minister Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad said yesterday that Putrajaya is open to exhuming the bodies of Orang Asli from Kg Kuala Koh buried deep in the forest for post-mortem.

“There are already two cases, which are sufficient (to shed light on the cause of death)… there is no problem in exhumation.

“We are more than willing to (exhume) but we don’t know where they were buried exactly,” Dzulkefly told a press conference, after visiting Kg Kuala Koh villagers at Gua Musang Hospital.

On Sunday, environmentalist Shariffa Sabrina Syed Akil urged the state government to remove all remaining Orang Asli in the village to a safer place.

The president of Pertubuhan Pelindung Khazanah Alam Malaysia (Peka) said the recent deaths of the Bateq tribe members from drinking contaminated water in Kg Kuala Koh in Gua Musang were preventable if Kelantan stopped mining and logging activities in the area.

“Since the start of the mining and logging activities, the villagers have been ill and finding it harder to make their livelihood. The responsible parties should have come forward and put an end to this problem,” she told The Malaysian Insight.

The definitive cause of the outbreak of the disease is still being determined but the patients have shown signs of respiratory-related diseases.

The incident came to light when more than 100 villagers began seeking medical treatment for similar symptoms, two of whom later died.

Organisations working with the Bateq tribe have blamed the polluted water sources, contaminated by chemical run-off from mining operations and plantations nearby.

Currently, there are 42 villagers still receiving hospital treatment at Hospital Gua Musang and Hospital Kuala Krai. Another 47 villagers have been discharged and are receiving outpatient care. – June 11, 2019.