SABAH has ordered all local authorities to be on alert following incessant rain and flooding in several west coast districts.
Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor ordered all district offices to ensure all watercourses in their areas are cleared of obstructions to mitigate potential disasters.
"Make sure all the drains are cleared up. Do not wait until it rains before taking action. We want to mitigate and must be prepared at all times," he said when visiting flood-hit Penampang district today.
Hajiji, who also visited victims at the Penampang Cultural Centre temporary shelter, expressed concern over the floods, which had claimed one life and displaced 165 people in the district to date.
They are currently housed at temporary shelters at Penampang Cultural Hall and Dewan Sri Putatan.
"The state government sympathises with their plight and are prepared to give emergency cash assistance of RM1,000 to each family.
"The federal government, through the Minister of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives of Malaysia, Datuk Ewon Benedick, who is Penampang MP, would also be lending a hand," he said.
Hajiji said the state is also considering assisting victims whose houses were damaged by the floods.
A total of 11 villages around the Penampang district were submerged due to heavy downpours on Sunday. One woman died after she was swept away by strong currents in Donggongon during the flash flood.
Also present were State Secretary Datuk Seri Panglima Haji Safar Untong, Assistant Works Minister Datuk Limus Jury, and Internal Affairs and Research Secretary Datuk Awang Shaminan Sahari, who toured the flood situation at Kampung Tuavon and Hungab.
The Malaysian Meteorological Department had warned of wet conditions in early June due to the La Nina phenomenon culminating between July and September this year.
The department issued a thunderstorm alert yesterday around 12am, some 12 hours before the flooding occurred.
Bernama reported that 5,000 students in Tuaran, Papar, Penampang, and Sipitang could not attend schools as the Education Department had ordered the closure of 10 schools. - The Vibes, July 1, 2024
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