The Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia) on Saturday denied the dissemination of the message that a tsunami and storm would purportedly hit the Sabah east coast within 36 hours' time.

A statement from the department advised members of the public not to easily believe any advice or warning disseminated via the social media whose source was not from MetMalaysia.

For confirmation of the information, the public were urged to refer to the website MetMalaysia http://www.met.gov.my or the official mobile web m.met.gov.my or Facebook https:/facebook.com/malaysiamet or Twitter https://twitter.com/malaysiamet or MetMalaysia Hotline at the number 1300221MET (1638).

Meanwhile in a separate statement, the department issued an alert on a second category strong wind and choppy sea condition hitting the waters of Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang and east Johor which were expected to prolong until Monday.

The north-easterly wind with a speed of 50-60 kilometres per hour and waves reaching 4.5 metres high would be dangerous for beach activities and shipping.

The statement also stated that the coastal areas in Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang were also exposed to a rise in sea level until Monday.