Residents in flood-prone areas prepare for more misery

Brace for the worst: Govindoo and her granddaughter S. Dhariishene, 14, looking at the sandbags placed in front of their home to prevent flooding.

BALIK PULAU: Two days after being hit by a deluge, a village in Batu Ferringhi was flooded again after a 30-minute downpour.

Batu Ferringhi Village Develop-ment and Security Committee chairman Ahmad Jassin said 25 houses in Kampung Batu Ferringhi were inundated yesterday.

“The water was ankle high at about noon.

“On Monday, the situation was really bad as the water reached waist level,” he said yesterday.

Meanwhile, residents living in other flood-prone areas are not taking any chances and have begun preparations for the worst.

Grandmother M. Govindoo, 80, said her family put up bags of sand in front of their rented house to prevent water from entering.

“Our house is frequently hit by floods after downpours.

“In July, the water level was knee high,” said Govindoo when met at Kampung Teluk Awak near Lengkok Teluk Bahang 1.

Residents in Jalan P. Ramlee have moved their belongings to higher ground in anticipation of more floods.

Rahmattullah Abdul Majid, 43, said he did not want to be caught off guard again like the last time.

“The floodwaters started rising at 3am on Monday when I was asleep and I could not salvage anything.

“Within a few minutes, the water reached my chest,” he said.

Rahmattullah, who is unemployed, said he had to fork out more than RM600 to repair his fridge and washing machine which were soaked in floodwaters.

Hardware supplier Salim Abdullah, 40, said he would be taking his family over to their relative’s house the moment it starts to rain.

“Two of my cars have to be sent to the workshop because of the floods on Monday.

“Now I’ve moved some of my stock to higher ground,” he said.

The Malaysian Meteorological Department has forecast thunderstorms and rain from today until Monday.