Floods displace close to 139000 people in Malaysia with death toll at 4
Updated
Nov 30, 2024, 09:22 PM
Published
Nov 30, 2024, 04:15 PM
KUALA LUMPUR – Almost 139,000 people have been forced out of their homes as massive floods caused by relentless rain swept through Malaysia’s northern states, disaster officials said on Nov 30.
The number surpassed the 118,000 displaced during one of the country’s worst floods in 2014, and disaster officials feared that it could rise further as there was no let-up in the torrential downpours.
The death toll remained at four across Kelantan, Terengganu and Sarawak.
Kelantan has borne the brunt of the flooding, accounting for 63 per cent of the 138,979 people displaced, according to data from Malaysia’s National Disaster Management Agency.
There were more than 39,200 people evacuated in Terengganu, with the rest of those displaced reported from seven other states.
Heavy rain, which began early this week, continued to hammer the town of Pasir Puteh in Kelantan, where people could be seen walking through streets inundated with hip-deep waters.
“My area has been flooded since Wednesday,” Pasir Puteh resident and school janitor Zamrah Majid, 59, told AFP.
“The water has already reached my house corridor and is just (5cm) away from coming inside.
“Luckily, I moved my two cars to higher ground before the water level rose.”
She said she allowed her grandchildren to play in the water in front of the house because it was still shallow.
“But if the water gets higher, it would be dangerous – I’m afraid they might get swept away,” she added.
“I haven’t received any assistance yet, whether it’s welfare or other kinds of help.”
Mr Muhammad Zulkarnain, 27, who is living with his parents in Pasir Puteh, said that they were isolated.
“There’s no way in or out for any vehicles to enter my neighbourhood,” he said.
“Of course I’m scared... Luckily, we have received some assistance from (non-governmental organisations) – they gave us food supplies like biscuits, instant noodles and eggs.”
The Malaysian Meteorological Department or MetMalaysia warned that the heavy rain will continue until Dec 1 in Kelantan, Terengganu and Perak.
Floods are an annual phenomenon in the South-east Asian nation of 34 million people due to the north-east monsoon that brings heavy rain from November to March.
Thousands of personnel working in the emergency services have been deployed in flood-prone states, along with rescue boats, four-wheel-drive vehicles and helicopters, said Malaysia’s Deputy Prime Minister Zahid Hamidi, the chairman of the National Disaster Management Committee. AFP, THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
