KUALA LUMPUR – Heavy flooding caused by torrential rain has forced the evacuation of over 14,000 people in the Malaysian states of Johor, Pahang, Terengganu and Sabah.

Deputy Prime Minister Zahid Hamidi, who is also the National Disaster Committee chairman, said on Saturday that there was no need for an emergency to be called and that the flood situation was under control.

“I think there is no need for an emergency to be called over the floods as they are only happening in certain states and districts,” Zahid told the press after meeting flood victims in Mersing, in Johor.

Heavy, continuous rain triggered by the north-east monsoon led to floods in six districts in Johor, five districts in Sabah and one each in Pahang and Terengganu.

Bernama news agency reported that four rivers in Johor – Sungai Lenik in Segamat, Sungai Kahang in Kluang, Sungai Muar in Muar and Sungai Endau in Mersing – had already breached the level considered dangerous as at Saturday.

Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Sabah, Sarawak Affairs and Special Tasks), said that as at Friday, there were 4,569 families, involving 14,012 people, in the four states displaced by the floods.

More than 10,000 of the flood victims were from the eastern state of Sabah. These flood victims were put up at 73 temporary flood relief centres in the four states, he said, after visiting a flood shelter in Sabah on Saturday.

Continuous heavy rain is expected to occur over Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang and Johor until Monday, the Malaysian Meteorological Department said on Saturday afternoon.

Severe floods in December displaced close to 70,000 people in five Malaysian states. THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK