Over 100 villagers in Kota Marudu evacuated due to floods

Firemen going around flooded areas in Kota Marudu to help stranded villagers.- Photo by Sabah Fire Department

KOTA KINABALU: More than 100 villagers in Kota Marudu district, some 120km from here, were evacuated and placed in temporary shelters following floods due to continuous rain since Friday (Jan 25).

Sabah Fire and Rescue Department operations chief Khatizah Rahaban said the flood victims from 33 families were temporarily placed at four shelters – Kg Longob Hall, SK Tertipan, Mosolog Hall and Morion Hall.

"Our teams as well as other agencies are assisting the evacuation," she said, adding that they were also going from one village to another to find displaced victims.

"It is still raining and we are worried that the situation will worsen," she added.

The affected villages so far are Kg Longob, Kg Belianjung, Kg Maragatung, Kg Mosolog, Kg Salimandut, Kg Damai, Kg Parong, Kg Popok Laut, Kg Gurantung, Kg Garada, Kg Marion, and Kg Teritipan.

Jalan Gana, along KM5.7 in Kota Marudu, has also been cut off due to floods, whereas other roads are still accessible by vehicles as of 10am.

Several roads in other districts, including Kota Belud, not too far away from Kota Marudu, have also been inundated by floodwaters.

Many parts of Sabah, including Kota Kinabalu, have been raining since Friday.

According to the Meteorological Department, rain is expected to continue until Sunday (Jan 27) and the areas of concern are the interiors such as Tambunan district, west coast districts including Ranau and Kota Belud, Tawau, Lahad Datu, Sandakan, Kudat and Kota Marudu.