THE Hari Raya mood of 24 families in Pontian was dashed after their homes were inundated following a five-hour downpour in Pekan Nanas on Tuesday (May 3), reports Utusan Malaysia.
Pontian penghulu Fadzullah Mohd Yusof said six families in Kg Paya Embun were affected, as well as four in Kg Seri Gambut, 11 in Kg Melayu Raya, and three in Kg Maju Jaya.
However, he said there was no need to open a temporary flood relief centre at the moment.
The area has two schools, SK Melayu Raya and SK Kampung Sawah, which have been gazetted as flood relief centres.
“Both schools have been contacted if evacuation becomes necessary,” he told the Malay daily.
According to Fadzullah, the water level rose to 0.9m (3ft) at Lorong Teratai in Kg Paya Embun and 0.6m (2ft) at Kg Maju Jaya.
He added that the Pekan Nanas Fire and Rescue Department was also monitoring the situation.
It rained from 3am to 7am on Tuesday, he added.
Fadzullah said the residents involved did not want to be evacuated because of the festive season.
“We will continue to monitor the situation and will keep in contact with the other village heads," he said.
> The declining trend of Covid-19 cases may influence some to hide their positive status by not reporting it on the MySejahtera app, Berita Harian quoted a health expert as saying.
This comes after the country reported under 2,000 daily cases for two consecutive days.
Dr Hanafiah Bashirun, an occupational health, emergency and public health expert, said many may not report their Covid-19 status during the festive season.
He also did not rule out the possibility that some cases may go unreported as individuals would not want to have their MySejahtera status changed and be caught by authorities during random checks.
“We expect cases to rise as most people are no longer wearing a mask or practising physical distancing, especially when the country is celebrating Aidilfitri,” he said.
Dr Hanafiah advised those who are positive for Covid-19 to remain at home and avoid meeting people, especially during the festive season.
He also urged them to have a sense of social responsibility and not endanger others just so they can have a good time.
“I urge everyone to self-test to determine their health status and not become complacent during the Aidilfitri celebration,” he said.
He also added that people must be aware that some positive cases could be asymptomatic.
> Veteran actress Aripah Damanhuri, 73, who was hospitalised at Hospital Kuala Lumpur for a suspected lung infection, has shown signs of improvement.
BH Online quoted her son Nurpais Ismail, 42, as saying that she has been responding well to treatment and is now able to speak although she has shortness of breath.
He said doctors have been giving her pure oxygen.
“If (the oxygen therapy) is successful, the doctors will monitor her for a few days before shifting her to a normal ward,” he said.
“For now she is still in the intensive care unit,” he said.
Nurpais added that his mother's physicians did not encourage visits so that she can have complete rest to regain her strength.
It was earlier reported that Aripah was put into a medically-induced coma at the HKL Emergency unit on April 23 for the suspected lung infection.
