Hot weather in Malaysia: No school closures thus far though outdoor activities suspended
Deputy Education Minister Lim Hui Ying says that state education departments will monitor and close schools should the temperature exceed 37 degrees Celsius over three consecutive days.
KUALA LUMPUR: There have been no school closures in Malaysia due to the sustained hot weather, the country’s Deputy Education Minister Lim Hui Ying said on Wednesday (May 3).
According to the New Straits Times (NST), the ministry has however ordered all outdoor activities to be temporarily suspended.
"To prevent any untoward incident, the ministry has ordered for all outdoor activities, including co-curricular and sports activities, in schools nationwide to be temporarily suspended,” Ms Lim was quoted as saying by NST.
She also said that school administrators are to take precautionary measures and monitor the daily weather conditions.
“According to our guidelines, as long as the temperature exceeds 37 degrees Celsius (over three consecutive days), the state education departments will monitor and close the schools,” Ms Lim said, according to Malay Mail.
Local media previously reported that the education ministry has in place guidelines on safety measures, which include monitoring daily temperatures.
According to the ministry’s guidelines issued last Friday, schools must suspend outdoor activities for students and teachers if the temperature is between 35 degrees Celsius and 37 degrees Celsius for three consecutive days.
If the temperature reaches over 37 degrees Celsius for three consecutive days and a heatwave is declared by the Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia), schools will be ordered to shut.
The education ministry has since allowed students and teachers to wear athletic clothing to school amid the prolonged hot weather in some Malaysian states.
Education deputy director-general of school operations, Dr Norisah Suhaili, in a letter dated May 2 said that the decision was made to ensure the welfare, health and safety of students, teachers as well as school administrators.
Dr Norisah said the current hot weather could trigger a heatwave, which could lead to health complications such as hyperthermia, heatstroke and dehydration.
Just last week, Malaysia’s health director-general Dr Muhammad Radzi Abu Hassan said that a total of five cases of heat-related illness had been detected in the country.
According to a report by The Star last month, MetMalaysia had forecast the temperature to hover at about 35 degrees Celsius in most parts of the country daily until early May.
