IPOH: Water from the Bukit Merah Dam is being released downstream due to increasing water levels from continuous rainfall.
Perak water committee chairman Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin said the water level at the dam has increased from a normal level of 8.7m on Thursday (Oct 23) at 6pm to 9.1m on Friday (Oct 24) at 6am.
"The release of water is done to manage the water level at the dam that has continued to rise from a normal level to a cautionary level within 24 hours.
"We have also considered the water flow rate to the Bukit Merah pond, which has also increased from 61.8 cubic meters per second to 200 cubic meters per second," he said in a statement on Friday.
"The water release exercise is to ensure the structure of the dam is safe and functioning at an optimum level," he added.
Mohammad Nizar said the state would continue to monitor the impact of the water release exercise on downstream areas and evaluate the situation.
"The Kerian district disaster management committee will be informed if there is a flooding risk.
"The people are also advised to be vigilant and be ready to adhere to instructions from the authorities," he said.
On the flooding in Manjung, Kerian, Kinta and Larut, Matang and Selama (LMS), where more than 2,000 people have been affected, Mohammad Nizar said it was due to a high amount of rainfall, compounded by existing drainage and irrigation systems that are unable to cope with the high amount of water.
"According to the Meteorology Department, the average rainfall in the affected districts was between 140mm and 190mm.
"In some areas, the rainfall in the past few days has exceeded the average levels, like Pondok Tanjung, which has reached 244.5mm, Bukit Larut (136mm) and Sungai Kurau Batu 14 (174mm)," he said.
"The drainage system in some areas is unable to cope with the high intensity of rainfall since Thursday evening, causing them to overflow," he added.
