[UPDATED] Sarawak’s Baram River breaches 7m warning level

MIRI – Heavy downpour in interior parts of Sarawak has caused the Baram River to swell beyond its warning-alert levels.

The Sarawak Fire and Rescue Department stated that the river had breached warning levels along the Long Teru water basin monitoring station, this morning.

“Normally the depth of the Baram River is 3m deep, with warning levels at 7m and danger levels at 8m.

“Today the river breached the warning level mark at 7.09m

“The people living along the riverbank have been warned,” the department stated in its report.

In the meantime, the Sarawak Fire and Rescue Department’s Air Wing unit is carrying out regular aerial surveillance at the flood-prone locations.

The unit has been flying from its air base, here, into the remote pockets of the state to assess the ground situation.

More than 500 locations scattered throughout Sarawak have been identified as high-risk for possible floods and landslides.

The weather looks set to deteriorate further in the state as the “landas season” sets in.

The landas in Sarawak is the equivalent to the monsoon season in the east coast of the peninsula.

Torrential rain can persist non-stop, with floods cutting off rural settlements for days.

Meanwhile, floods have also hit Sibu district in central Sarawak, even as the Meteorological Department warns of heavy rain in southern and central Sarawak districts.

In its latest update, the state’s fire department said Kg Seduan in Sibu has seen water flooding houses now.

“Floodwaters are rising, entering houses in the village. The water is about one foot high in the houses and rising.

“Some residents are starting to prepare to evacuate but many still want to wait,” said the department.

They warned that heavy rain will hit southern districts like Kuching, Serian and the central districts like Sibu and Kapit within the next two days. – The Vibes, January 12, 2022