KOTA KINABALU: Houses, buildings and vehicles were damaged while livestock as well as pets were killed following floods in the interior Paitan district.
Neighbouring areas of Pitas, Kota Marudu, Sandakan and Beluran were affected as well, with property losses also reported, though less severe than in Paitan.
Flooding in Sabah’s northern districts has intensified sharply, with more than 1,000 people forced from their homes as of last night.
The latest figures from the Sabah State Disaster Command Centre show 1,070 people from 376 families have now been displaced across Kota Marudu and Pitas, a steep increase from just over 400 victims reported earlier in the afternoon.
Pitas is the worst-affected district, accounting for 780 evacuees from 286 families, with flooding now impacting 30 villages.
Efforts to evacuate flood victims from Paitan and other areas are ongoing, hampered by cut-off roads, accessibility issues, limited manpower and facilities.
Fortunately, those with speedboats are assisting villagers as best they can, with rising water levels and strong currents persisting.
Among those assisting to evacuate flood victims via speedboats were a community leader from Kg Lubang Buaya Paitan, Rahman Juspak, and his wife, Urap Matikas.
Along with other villagers, the couple in their 50s go from house to house, many of which were fully inundated by floodwaters, and village to village, searching for anyone needing help using a community-owned speedboat.
“There are also animals that are crying out for help, but we can only get to people first,” said Rahman.
He added that this incident is a huge trial not only for his family but for Paitan.
Rahman said that as a Christian observing Lent, he sees this as a way to do as much good as possible.
Victims in other affected areas were also doing their part to help one another, including using their vehicles to evacuate villagers and offering them temporary shelter.
Landslides, fallen trees and damaged electric poles that caused power outages have also been reported.
