KOTA KINABALU – Strong winds, rough seas, and an irregular high-tide have wreaked havoc for homes built near the coastal areas of the state.
It has so far sunk a ship and forced hundreds to be evacuated.
Tanjung Aru state assemblyman Datuk Junz Wong said 16 households in Kampung Tanjung Aru were dangerously exposed to the high-tide and rough seas last night.
Two houses were damaged, with many houses in the water village settlement seeing sea waters rising above the floors of their homes.
The Civil Defence Department reported that 87 people had been affected in the incident late last night.
The victims are currently being put up at the Tanjung Aru community centre for the time being, as the department expects water levels to continue rising.
The Vibes previously reported the high-tide incident where rising waters had spilled onto local roads, inundating the jetty at the Membakut ferry terminal.
The Meteorological Department has issued a category III weather alert, warning residents not to go near the coastal areas, where rough seas and strong winds have been recorded.
The disaster comes after four districts in Sabah – Pitas, Kota Marudu, Beaufort, and Kudat – experienced flooding, forcing thousands into temporary shelters after a storm hit several Sabah West Coast districts on January 11.
In Kudat, the Civil Defence Force had to evacuate hundreds of coastal communities as high tides are expected to continue over the next couple of days.
The agency has yet to confirm the number of evacuees.
“The authorities have ordered residents to relocate today and the wooden floors of their homes to be dismantled for fear it might be washed away by the strong waves,” an official from the force said.
In Kinabatangan, three persons have been reported missing after the tug boat they were on sank last night.
The Ever Winner tugboat, which had four crew members, was towing a barge when bad weather hit them at around 4am yesterday.
A search and rescue operation was launched by the Maritime Agency at around 5pm yesterday.
The boat’s chief engineer Asman Mohamad was saved after he swam to a nearby island.
But captain Mohd Mal, 49, and crew members, Mohd Hafiz Isyra Nagrah, 22, and Azlan Hassan, remain missing.
Another man, Roslie Antala, 48, in charge of manning the barge, was also found safe. He was discovered in the shallows at the edge of the Kinabatangan Besar riverbank. – The Vibes, January 14, 2020
