Number of flood evacuees in Malaysia exceeds 50,000

The number of people displaced by flooding in Malaysia soared to more than 50,000 in three states on Sunday as

pelting rain continued unabated.

Heavy downpours since early last week caused rivers to break their banks and drown villages, roads and vehicles. Four people have died.

The Fire and Rescue Department has advised residents near rivers, lakes and ponds to be vigilant about the possibility of another wave of floods.

This comes as the Malaysian Meteorological Department warned of continuous rainfall in Johor, Pahang and parts of Sarawak until Monday. High tides are also expected in several states.

About 50,500 people were housed in more than 300 temporary relief centres in Johor, Pahang and Melaka as at Sunday evening, according to a Department of Social Welfare portal.

The last two in Negeri Sembilan were closed on Sunday afternoon after receding flood waters allowed victims to return home, Malaysia’s civil defence said.

Johor continues to be the worst-hit state with

almost 47,000 evacuees seeking shelter,

prompting the authorities to open more relief centres.

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Sunday visited Segamat, one of the worst-hit districts in the southern Malaysian states, where he met flood victims housed at relief centres.

He said the flood situation in the country is still under control as waters have started to recede in several areas, and there is no need to declare a disaster emergency.

“The government has decided not to declare a flood emergency, as rainfall is expected to ease.

“Several places have also seen waters receding today. But, there are also some places that may have stagnant water and this may take some time (to recede). There is no need to announce an emergency for now,” he said.

He said work on flood mitigation projects worth RM600 million (S$180 million) and above will start from June 1.

“The issue of floods will keep recurring if we do not take serious actions. This is not the first time it has happened – it has happened for many years,” he said.

Malaysian electricity provider Tenaga Nasional also shut down dozens of power substations in Johor, compounding the misery of thousands of flood-hit victims with power disruptions. Tenaga’s general manager said supply would be resumed when waters receded.

The works ministry said 130 roads were damaged in the flood-hit states, with more than RM130 million in repairs required.

Johor Menteri Besar Onn Hafiz Ghazi said in a Facebook post on Sunday that a state-level committee in charge of disaster management is currently “conducting special operations” to help the worst-hit victims.

The government has spent RM615,000 on rations for those affected by the floods, said Malaysia’s Minister of Women, Family and Community Development Nancy Shukri, with more expected to be spent on food and mental health support.

The health authorities said they are monitoring possible cases of leptospirosis and dengue, as well as other diseases.

This comes after three Covid-19 cases were detected among flood evacuees in the state.

Neighbouring Pahang recorded more than 3,000 victims housed in 21 shelters.

On Saturday, officials from the Fire and Rescue Department used helicopters to drop off food items to residents of three villages in Muadzam Shah who are trapped in their homes due to nearby floods and landslides.

Meanwhile, the number of victims in Melaka increased to more than 500 people from 150 families.

In Melaka, padi fields in the Sungai Rambai area near Jasin have been submerged since Friday.

“We had expected to harvest the padi during Hari Raya but now we can only afford to pray and hope that the flood water would subside soon to avoid suffering bigger losses,” Ms Nur Faezah Zabidin, 26, told The Star on Saturday.

Malaysia is facing unprecedented continuous torrential rain from the annual monsoon season that began in November.

The South-east Asian nation often experiences stormy weather around the year’s end, with seasonal flooding regularly causing mass evacuations and deaths.

But Ms Meenakshi Raman, president of environmental group Friends of the Earth Malaysia, said the large volume of rainfall is “unusual” at this time of the year, blaming the flooding on the lack of green spaces.

“Forest and land clearings in the upper reaches of our rural areas, towns and cities lead to our rivers and drains chocked with soil erosion, and they cannot contain the increased volumes of rainfall,” she told AFP.

“Morever, the over-concretising of areas also leads to overflows of water, as there is little green left to act as sponges.”