Monsoon flooding forces 6,000 from homes in Malaysia

By P Prem Kumar

KUALA LUMPUR (AA) - Strong monsoon rains have caused some 6,000 people to be evacuated from their homes in Malaysian east coast states, with school sessions canceled until further notice.

The federal minister in charge of disaster management, Shahidan Kassim, told Anadolu Agency in a telephone conversation Sunday that the states of Kelantan and Terengganu are placed under close supervision of the Civil Defense Force, in anticipation of heavier rainfall.

He said floods in Terengganu have continued to worsen, with the number of evacuees in six districts rising to 4,062 as of 8 a.m. (0000GMT), while close to 1,900 evacuees were reported in Kelantan.

"I believe that in the early stages, when it rained, they [the rescue team] might not have expected [the flooding] to go up to that level... but the force was all prepared with their machinery to act if the matter gets worst,” said Kassim.

"We have minimalized the impact to the people in the process of precautions, evacuation and also restoration."

A total of 73 relief centers have been established in the two states to house the flood victims.

Usually, schools and public halls would be transformed into relief centers where constant medical and food supplies would be prepared.

A total of 1,244 families have been affected in Terengganu and 524 neighboring Kelantan by floods that hit the states early Saturday.

The levels of three rivers in Terengganu have also breached the “danger point” while those of four more were above the alert stage, according to the portal of the state's Drainage and Irrigation Department.

Monsoon flooding is a seasonal phenomenon in Malaysia, where east coasters face heavy rainfall -- which results in flash floods -- almost every year-end.

At end of 2014, Malaysia witnessed its worst floods in 30 years, with over 250,000 people evacuated at the peak of the natural disaster.

Three east coast states -- Pahang, Kelantan and Terengganu -- suffered severely, while the flooding also hit other states including Perak, Johor, Selangor and Negri Sembilan.