Port Klang ............. renamed since July 1972
Pelabuhan Klang ... Malay name
Before Port Swettenham existed, there were Swettenham Pier in Penang - a deep sea harbour, and another at Keppel Harbour in Singapore.
Port Swettenham was inspired by Frank Swettenham. This port was for exporting rubber to the USA, and tin to England. It was also used for picking up and sending home Hajj pilgrims, before Tabung Haji was formed and commercial flights were made available.
Port Swettenham is located about 6 kilometres (3.7 miles) southwest of the town of Klang, and 38 kilometres (24 miles) southwest of Kuala Lumpur, the country's capital.
Port Swettenham was built on a mangrove swamp and mosquitoes were a menace then. Malaria was rampant in the coastal areas and Port Swettenham, The early Malay doctors were posted to manage health at Klang, Port Swettenham, and the coastal areas. Among doctors posted to Klang, Port Swettenham, and the coastal areas included Dr Che Lah bin Md Joonos and his colleagues.
Land fill helped and malaria ceased to exist. No malaria is reported anymore. There is no malaria in Malaysia today.
The same mosquito menace is being experienced by areas with many lakes and swamps today - for example Mandurah and Serpentine Hill in Western Australia.
Port Swettenham is presently divided into 3 parts, with 3 different agencies managing each part or port - Southport (oldest), Northport and Westport. Southport is still under the Govt. Northport and Westport have been privatized.
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| Map of Port Swettenham 1954. Wikipedia Port Swettenham And Vicinity by U.S. Army Map Service |
http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/ams/indonesia/txu-oclc-21752461-na47-8-back-b.jpg
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There are road and railway links to Port Swettenham.
Port Klang Komuter station offices" by Rifleman_82
- Own work. Licensed under Public Domain via Commons
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Klang
- terminus of Govt railway
- port town of Selangor state
- capital of Selangor state before 1880
- royal town of the Bugis rulers of the Selangor Sultanate
- Indian labourers were shipped here to work on rubber estates
- largely Indian populace
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Milestones
1880
- KL replaced Klang as the capital of Selangor
- transport between KL-Klang was by horse or buffalo wagons, or boat
- William Bloomfield Douglas was the British Resident
- Sir Frank Athelstane Swettenham described the journey as long and boring
Suggested to add a railway line to link KL to Klang
1882
- Sir Frank Swettenham became Selangor Resident in Sept 1882
- He initiated a railway link between KL-Klang
- alleviated problems with transporting tin ore to Port Swettenham (Pelabuhan Batu)
1886
- Railway track measuring 19.5 miles between KL-Bukit Kudu was opened in Sept 1886
1890
- KL-Bukit Kudu railway track was extended by 3 miles to join to Klang
1897
- Sir Ronald Ross discovered the malarial parasite, an anophelene mosquito
Britain's Sir Ronald Ross proved in 1897 that malaria is transmitted by mosquitoes. Port Swettenham was the first colonial area to benefit from the discovery. Swamps were filled in, jungle cleared, and surface water diverted to destroy mosquito breeding grounds and combat further disruption to port operations. The threat of malaria was removed completely by the end of the exercise. Source: Wikipedia
1901
- Port Swettenham was opened on 15 Sept 1901 by Sir Frank Swettenham
1902
- the Selangor Polo Club was founded in Port Swettenham
1911
- the Selangor Polo Club moved to KL
1914
- 2 new births and other port facilities were added
1930
- Port Swettenham deep seaport was developed by the Malayan Railway
- Hajj pilgrims could leave Port Swettenahm for Penang and onward to Jeddah. East coast
pilgrims preferred Port Swettenham rather than go down to Keppel Harbour in Singapore.
1995
- Port Klang Cruise Centre opened in December 1995 at Pulau Indah,
next to the cargo terminals of Westport
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Scheme to Develop Port Swettenham
- full report by the Imperial Shipping Committee
- Chairman: Sir Halford Mackinder
Secretary: R. M. Nowell
Signatures:
1. Sir Halford Mackinder
2. S. J. Chapman (UK)
3. G. H. Ferguson (Canada)
4. Granville Ryrie (Australia)
5. T. M. Wilford (New Zealand)
6. H. T. Andrews (South Africa)
7. Atul C. Chatterjee (India)
8. G. Grindle (Colonies and Protectorates)
9. Stanley H. Dodwell (merchant)
10. T. Harrison Hughes (shipowner)
11. W. L. Hichens (shipbuilder)
12. Kenneth Lee (manufacturer)
13. A. Shaw (shipowner)
14. F. C. Shelmerdine (civil aviation)
- Terms of Reference: 10
- to provide additional deep water berths at Port Swettenham
- estimated cost £1,300,000
- wharfage will be 1,100 to 1,200 feet
- to provide 2 adequate berths for ocean-going vessels
- maximum capacity of the quay approximately 350,000 tons a year
- Port Swettenham harbour is completely landlocked
- minimum depth 22 feet over the bar at the southern entrance
(the average rise of tide is 15 feet at springs
and 9 feet at neaps)
and 32 feet in the anchorage
TST 20Oct1931 p14
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Gene technology
- use gene editing to cure genetic defects
- use gene editing to make genetic changes spread rapidly through an entire population (gene drive)
- use gene drive to prevent mosquitoes from spreading a disease
Malaria
- malaria is a fatal disease
- it killed more than 0.5 million people in 2014
Malaria-free mosquitoes
- Nov 2015: UC San Diego (UCSD) used CRISPR to create a population of mosquitoes
resistant to spreading malaria
- 2 weeks later: scientists in London had modified another species of mosquito
(that caused 90% of death due to malaria) to stop it from spreading malaria
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External links
Port Swettenham http://www.rsmurthi.com/PortSwettenhamPhotos.html
Majlis Perbandaran Klang stesen keretapi port swettenham
Port Klang Railway http://www.great-railway-journeys-malaysia.com/klang.html
YouTube of Port Klang in 1960 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hu2bKFk4nIs
Port Klang in Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_Klang
7 major advancements in gene editing in 2015 by Tanya Lewis, Dec 30 2015
7 Major Gene Advancements in Gene Editing in 2015
