Hours of rain flood homes and force schools to close

Much to do: SK Darau Menggatal pupils cleaning up a classroom in their school in Kota Kinabalu. (Below) Two school workers walking through floodwaters to get to the canteen in SK Jabi in Pokok Sena. — Bernama

GEORGE TOWN: Schools closed, longhouses got flooded and houses were all muddied as floodwaters wreaked havoc in several states.

Here, a flash flood struck Teluk Bahang, affecting 150 houses following a four-hour downpour early yesterday.

Housewife Jamani Yusof, 52, said when water started to rise slowly at about 4.30am, her family quickly moved the furniture to a higher level.

“Fortunately, we had erected a barrier at the entrance to our house to hold back the water,” she said, adding that gave them time to move the essentials.

“Muddy water still flowed in. And when the water subsided, we spent hours cleaning up the house,” she said.

Teluk Bahang assemblyman Datuk Shah Headan Ayoob Hussain Shah said a culvert, which was not upgraded, might be the main cause of the floods in Kampung Teluk Awak, Kampung Nelayan and Jalan Hassan Abas.

State Flood Mitigation Committee chairman Chow Kon Yeow said five areas in Teluk Bahang were affected.

Flash floods also affected some 100 houses in six villages at Penaga on the mainland. No evacuation was reported.

Two school workers walking through floodwaters to get to the canteen in SK Jabi in Pokok Sena. —Bernama

In Alor Setar, more than 360 students of SK Jabi in Pokok Sena had to abandon classes and return home after a seven-hour downpour.

Parent and Teacher Association president Zakaria Ismail said this was the second time the school had been hit by flash floods in a week.

“The narrow drains slowed the flow of water and forced an overflow into low-lying areas,” he said.

A spokesman from the state Civil Defence Force said flash floods also occurred in Kuala Kedah, Bukit Pinang, Jalan Taman Pinang Emas and Jalan Taman Sirih. The Kuala Muda district was also affected.

State Water Resources, Water Supply, Housing and Local Government Committee chairman Datuk Badrul Hisham Hashim said the delay in the completion of the RM442mil Sungai Baru flood mitigation project in Anak Bukit had been blamed on the contractors and sub-contractors.

He said the three kilometre project, which was to be completed by this year, could only be finished in the first quarter of next year. “It is 17.5% behind schedule.”

He said the contractors had been told to “pull up their socks”.

Taking it in their stride: Mohd Hafizzuddin Kasim, 14, and his brother Mohd Amirull Arshaf, 16, making their way to SMK Bukit Katil Melaka.

In Kota Kinabalu, two more schools were ordered to close owing to rising floodwaters. This brings the total number to nine.

State Education Minister Datuk Maimunah Suhaibul said 3,806 pupils and 272 teachers were affected by the closures.

Floods also swept away several bridges in various parts of the state.

The state Civil Defence Department said 250 villagers were trapped in Kampung Narinang Kota Belud since Monday after a bridge collapsed.

In Kimanis town, 50 people from Kampung Penampang Baru Kimanis and Kampung Kingan Baru had to be evacuated.

In Miri, five schools and a longhouse, as well as a kindergarten in central Sarawak, were hit by floods.