[10] The Malaysian Fire and Rescue Department director-general Mohammad Hamdan Wahid explained that the further spread of toxic fumes could have been prevented if the illegally dumped chemicals found earlier were immediately removed.

[14] A resident interviewed on the issue said the rivers were once homes to various crabs, freshwater fish and shrimps with children used to swim in, but everything has been damaged since the pollution turned worse in April.

[25] Several other identified toxic gases emitted (following the interaction of the chemicals concerned with water and air) include acrolein, acrylonitrile, ethylbenzene, hydrogen chloride, D-limonene, toluene and xylene, which if inhaled, can cause headache, nausea, fainting and breathing difficulty.

[27] Johor's Sultan Ibrahim Ismail urged for an immediate action against the perpetrators involved in this pollution that endangered public lives while expressing his appreciation for the medical teams which had been working tirelessly to treat the victims in hospital.

[28] The Sultan has pledged a total of RM1 million (around US$250,000) towards helping rescue agencies and authorities to gather the necessary means and equipment to resolve the matter, meanwhile expressing his view that the incident shows the need for a government hospital to be built in Pasir Gudang.

[2][31] The federal government has approved an allocation of RM8 million for river purification works and has ordered various agencies including the police, military and Hazmat teams to support the situation in the affected area.

[39] Malaysia's Water, Land and Natural Resources Minister Xavier Jayakumar Arulanandam urged every state governments to take serious measures to overcome river pollution as climate change could cause the country to experience long periods of drought in the future.

[42] Johor's Crown Prince Tunku Ismail Idris took the matter to Twitter to express his opinion that the government should have instead declared a state of emergency on the day it first occurred and relocated residents to a temporary place until there was a guarantee that the area was safe.

[43] Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA) Deputy President Mah Hang Soon said that the incompetent preventive measures escalated the hazard levels in the involved area.

[47] A group of 160 victims of the pollution then began to file a suit and taking the Johor Menteri Besar along with the state government to court to seek monetary compensation for the boy and other damages caused by the illegal dumping of toxic chemicals.