PERMAISURI – A total of 1,641 flood victims seeking shelter at 15 relief centres in Terengganu had to be relocated after those centres began flooding yesterday.
Terengganu Police chief Datuk Rohaimi Md Isa said two relief centres in Kemaman, five each in Besut and Hulu Terengganu, and three in Setiu are those affected by the floods.
He said the unforeseen circumstance due to worsening floods in the state had made it difficult for the authorities and rescue agencies to manage and carry out evacuation missions.
“We hope all the victims can remain patient because the evacuation process will take time. We are trying to do it quickly and safely,” he said after visiting flood victims at SK Mangkuk near here, today.
Rohaimi said apart from a lack of heavy-duty assets, the evacuation process also faced constraints as many of the affected places had never been hit by floods before this.
Therefore, he said the focus would be on critical areas with chronic patients, pregnant mothers and elderlies who need immediate evacuation.
“The flood this time is different because some relief centres have also been submerged. Many areas that have never been flooded before are also affected.
“We have enough rescue personnel from the police, Fire and Rescue Department and the Malaysian Civil Defence Force, we just need bigger assets. But yesterday, we got the help of 16 five-tonne trucks from the East Coast Rail Link project management to overcome this problem,” he said.
In the meantime, he reminded parents to monitor their children and prevent them from playing in flood water for safety reasons. – Bernama, December 20, 2022
