Floods: Coordination lacking, urgent need to assess what is needed, says Dr Jemilah

SHAH ALAM: Coordination is lacking in the heavily affected areas that have been hit by floods and there is a need for an assessment of what is required, says humanitarian activist Tan Sri Dr Jemilah Mahmood (pic).

“Coordination that is so key is lacking. So, I can’t blame the sincere donors who just want to help.

“An urgent needs assessment is needed. To date, we have no idea how many are affected and how many are stranded,” she said.

Dr Jemilah also took an apparent dig at individuals, saying, “if you can fit someone in your boat with a cameraman rather than an affected person, then you have your priorities all wrong,” in an Instagram post Wednesday (Dec 22).

Dr Jemilah is the founder of Mercy Malaysia and a member of the United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination Team, with experience in coordinating and managing global disasters.

“The military has deployed drones,which is great, but it’s still house-to-house for now,” she added.

Dr Jemilah said the affected areas still had no electricity nor phone signals, and called for manual assessments on the ground.

“I have been going to ground zero and evacuation centres over the last few days and nights.

“Amazing work by volunteers, both from organisations and self-organised groups,” she said.

Dr Jemilah also pointed out that search-and-rescue works needed knowledge and experience, saying “many are not wearing life vests nor giving the rescued victims one.’’

She also said there was also a lot of food being sent to the centres and much had gone to waste.

“If you want to send food, send crackers in tins and dry food. It’s hard to cook rice when you are in an evacuation centre,” she said.