SHAH ALAM: Floodwaters in Taman Sri Muda here have started to recede, a full week after the residential area was inundated by floods on Dec 18, allowing residents to finally begin the laborious cleaning up process.
Residents were busy cleaning their houses in several locations checked by Bernama yesterday.
Some were cleaning their courtyards while others were washing furniture, and many more were salvaging whatever they could as they went through their belongings and threw away whatever was damaged.
All who were met, however, expressed relief that they could finally return home and carry on with their lives, all the while hoping that such a terrible tragedy would not occur again in the future.
A resident of Taman Sri Muda 2, Azli Mohd Yusof, said it was his first time experiencing a flood since living in the area for the past decade, but he was thankful that nothing bad had befallen his family.
“Alhamdulillah. The situation has improved and our family was allowed to return home yesterday after the authorities approved it.
“We are now busy cleaning the house,” said the 43-year-old father of four.
L. Banathan, 42, who lives near Jalan Amanah in Taman Sri Muda, was devastated by the floods but also glad that things were slowly returning to normal.
“I only wish that more people would help with the cleaning up as there are many piles of debris in the area,” he said.
Business owners and their employees at the commercial centre near Plaza Taman Sri Muda were seen cleaning up their business premises and assessing the damage wrought by the flooding.
The owner of an electronics store, who did not want to be named, expressed his sorrow over the losses he suffered, totalling over RM100,000, as most of his products were damaged in the floods.
“But what can I do, it’s already happened. We (businesses) hope that the government will consider additional incentives for flood victims because it is so hard to survive right now,” the 39-year-old said.
Meanwhile, National Disaster Management Agency (Nadma) operations director Datuk Hussein Omar Khan said the flood situation in Taman Sri Muda was improving and water had receded in all flood-affected areas.
Residents were allowed to return home to clean up their residences but relief centres would continue operating until they had completed their chores, he added.
“Some have settled back in at home but it does depend on the condition of their houses. Some are still sheltering at centres because food, treatment and other facilities are offered here,” he said.
Hussein added that clean-up efforts in all affected areas were underway involving personnel from various agencies, including the Shah Alam City Council, non- governmental organisations and volunteers.
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