Hundreds in Johor evacuated as flooding fears rise
Authorities in two states on full alert as heavy rain tipped to continueStraits Times, The (Singapore)
December 7, 2007
Malaysia, Pg 18JOHOR BARU - HUNDREDS of people on the outskirts of Johor Baru and surrounding areas were evacuated yesterday from their homes as continuous rainfall since Wednesday night flooded five districts.
More than 1,000 people have been evacuated in Johor Baru, Segamat, Batu Pahat, Kota Tinggi and Kluang. Segamat is in north Johor while the other districts are in the central and southern parts of the Malaysian state.
The authorities are on full alert in Johor and Pahang. The two states suffered widespread flooding after heavy rain last December and January, with 110,000 people evacuated.
Those floods caused damage estimated at more than RM100 million (S$43 million).
A resident of Masai, Mr Arbain Wahab, 67, said he had not expected the water to rise so quickly as the rain was not that heavy on Wednesday morning.
'The water suddenly came up to my chest level...there was no time to save many things,' he said.
Social welfare officer Manayi Ibrahim was quoted as saying by the Bernama news agency that eight relief centres had been opened in Johor Baru, with two more in Kota Tinggi.
The Malay-language Utusan Malaysia daily said more than 1,000 families living in low-lying areas had been warned they might be evacuated if the rain continued.
The Meteorological Services Department has issued a 'red' alert to residents in Johor and southern Pahang as weather forecasts predicted torrential rain for three days starting from yesterday.
It also upgraded its heavy-rain warning from 'orange' to 'red' for the northern states of Kelantan, Terengganu and northern Pahang.
The red alert is the highest level in a three-stage warning system.
The red alert refers to tropical storms or typhoons with sustained wind speeds of at least 60kmh together with moderate to heavy rain, while 'orange' refers to moderate monsoon rain.
Meteorological Services Department deputy director-general Che Gayah Ismail said: 'Such heavy rain can cause floods. However, it may not be as bad as last year's floods.'
Johor Civil Defence Department director Che Othman Hussin said rescue teams had been deployed to monitor the situation in flooded areas.
'We are ready for the possibility of floods, and we can deploy our teams at any time,' he was quoted as saying by Utusan Malaysia.
Johor police chief Hussin Ismail said police opened a 24-hour flood operations room yesterday.
'We are prepared for the floods, and all our men are on standby,' he said.
Meanwhile, residents in low-lying areas in Sarawak have been told to prepare for the possibility of floods between Dec 22 and 29.
Bernama also reported that Sarawak has placed 6,000 rescue officers on standby, identified 584 temporary relief centres that could shelter more than 200,000 people and prepared more than 1,000 boats and 3,410 life jackets.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION FROM THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
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NO WARNING'The water suddenly came up to my chest level... there was no time to save many things.' - MASAI RESIDENT ARBAIN WAHAB
Copyright, 2007, Singapore Press Holdings Limited