THE STAR,Monday, January 13, 2003 - Security at the port terminals in Port Klang have been enhanced following US warnings that ships and major ports could be the target of terrorist attacks.

Among the measures being taken at the port are scanners to check containers, armed guards on vessels, body checks using metal detectors, anthrax checks on postal mail received via sea and increased checks on vehicles entering and leaving the ports.

Both Westport and Northport police are receiving daily maritime security alerts from New York on information related to threats to ports and vessels.

Westport security and fire chief Mahat Tumin told Star Maritime that they were on high alert and were being updated everyday on issues related to port and maritime security in the world from New York and US maritime security alert based in Singapore.

Mahat said they had introduced stricter checks and new procedures after he attended the international airport and seaport police meeting in New York recently.

“We are aware of the terrorist threat on ports and have been sending armed guards on board vessels, particularly those operated by APL and Maersk Sealand.

“We have five security officers specially trained to handle suspected anthrax cases in the port particularly in the handling of sea mail,” said Mahat.

He added that Westport had upgraded port security by introducing closed-circuit television for easy surveillance of the port vicinity and carrying out thorough checks on ship chandlers providing supplies to vessels.

Mahat said Westport, Northport and Port Klang Authority was in the process of introducing a new port security pass which would contain all the records of the holder.

“This means, if a port user has a bad record in Northport or prohibited from entering the port, our security personnel will know by checking information on the smart card,” he said.

When an American vessel berths at Port Klang now, six armed port security guards are sent to inspect the ship to make sure there are no explosives or weapons on board the vessel.

“The increased security checks are only conducted on American vessels. However, ships from other countries can also request for such checks if they suspect they fall into the high-risk category,” said Northport police security manager Noordin Shakaff.

He said they would not make it a routine to send armed guards on all vessels that berthed at the port because such measures may give the wrong impression that Malaysia was not safe.

“As our main priority is safety within the port, we currently send armed security guards on any vessel when it is loading or unloading particularly dangerous cargo to make sure the process goes smoothly,” he said.

Noordin said they also held weekly meetings with the district police on security measures within the port and worked closely with other enforcement agencies.

On another concern, he said illegal fishing at the wharf side was being curbed as fishing in port grounds had been deemed as dangerous under the International Maritime Organi-sation’s (IMO) laws on shipping.

He said they were in the process of setting a security cabin at the wharfs to prevent such activities from taking place.