Schiebel Camcopter S-100 deployed for river pollution crisis in Malaysia.

Schiebel’s CAMCOPTER S-100, supported by Three Tis Group, was deployed as a first emergency response providing critical situational information during the Kim Kim river toxic pollution crisis in Malaysia.

 Camcopter S-100 (Picture source: Schiebel)

In March 2019 more than two tons of illegal chemical waste were dumped in the Kim Kim river, which is located near the largest industrial area in the South of Malaysia,Johor Malaysia. As a result, toxic fumes were released throughout the adjoining area affecting more than 6,000 people with many being hospitalised and numerous schools being closed.

The Malaysia Ministry of Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change (MESTECC), in collaboration with Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF), called for a first emergency disaster response to analyse and scan the polluted river and adjoining area. The CAMCOPTER  S-100 was the Unmanned Air System (UAS) of choice and was deployed from March to September 2019 by MAF, supported by Schiebel’s partner Three Tis Group, to gain situational information of the affected area.

The UAS was operated by day and night for a total of approximately 30 flight hours. The CAMCOPTER S-100 was equipped with FLIR Systems Star SAFIRE 380-HDc, which delivers stabilised multi-spectral imaging and intelligence functions.

“The CAMCOPTER S-100 is perfectly suited for emergency response in crisis situations. Given its small size and innovative technology it is capable of flying in difficult terrain whilst collecting valuable data,” said Tunku Ahmad Zahir Bin Tunku Ibrahim, Managing Director at Three Tis Group.