KUALA BERANG: A man in Kampung Chapu here tied three metal drums to his bedridden father's adjustable bed to keep the elderly man comfortable when their house became flooded.
Zulkifli Che Noh, 37, said the idea to use the drums was suggested by villagers.
His father Che Noh Che Hassan, 79, has been unable to get up or sit up since the beginning of this year because of a neurological disorder.
"My father has had neurological disease for 20 years but he has been bedridden for the past 10 years.
"Previously, he could still sit on a chair for a few minutes. But this year, my father could no longer sit up and could only lie in bed.
"When the house was flooded before, my father would sit on a chair with a handle and (the other villagers and I) would carry it to the upper level of the house.
"This way (with the drums), we no longer have to carry him to the higher level," he said when met recently.
The private sector worker's efforts to keep his father proved useful when the bed floated successfully after floodwater rose to thigh level on Wednesday (Nov 27) afternoon.
He said that because of this, his father no longer needed to be carried to the upper floor or evacuated to a temporary relief centre when the house was flooded.
"My father is not comfortable in a relief centre because of his health condition.
"This way, my mother (Zainab@Halimah Ismail, 77) and siblings take turns to be with him at home while the others at at a relief centre," he said.
However, Zulkifli said the family would do their best to convince Che Noh to relocate to a relief centre if the flooding worsens.
He added that his home gets flooded every year during the monsoon season because it is near a river, and that he has experienced this since he was a child. – Bernama