Kelantan and Terengganu are bracing for heavy rain until Wednesday (Nov 11) after the Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia) issued severe-level warnings of continuous rain as a monsoon surge sweeps across the east coast, while more than 400 people remain in relief centres in Perak.
MetMalaysia director-general Dr Mohd Hisham Mohd Anip said on Monday (Nov 9) that forecast models showed the monsoon surge could bring continuous heavy rain, particularly along the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia and in eastern Sabah. The severe warning covers Bachok, Kota Bharu, Tumpat, Pasir Mas and Pasir Puteh in Kelantan, and nearly all of Terengganu, including Besut, Setiu, Dungun, Kemaman, Marang, Kuala Terengganu and Kuala Nerus.
Warnings at the lower alert level are in force for Tanah Merah, Machang, Kuala Krai and Jeli in Kelantan, for Hulu Terengganu, and for Kuantan, Pekan, Rompin and Jerantut in Pahang. In Sabah, the alert covers Kudat, Paitan, Telupid, Labuk and Sugut, Sandakan and Kinabatangan.
The National Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre of the Department of Irrigation and Drainage said on Sunday night that floods could hit nine districts in Kelantan: Kota Bharu, Tumpat, Bachok, Machang, Pasir Mas, Pasir Puteh, Tanah Merah, Kuala Krai and Jeli. It named the Kelantan, Golok and Kemasin river basins as the most likely to flood. The centre said low-lying and high-risk areas in Kuantan, Pekan and Rompin in Pahang could also be affected until Wednesday, and it issued alerts for six districts in Terengganu, namely Setiu, Kuala Terengganu, Kuala Nerus, Besut, Hulu Terengganu and Marang.
On the west coast, floods that hit Hilir Perak last week are still keeping families away from home. Hilir Perak district police chief ACP Chua Kok Lian said 424 people from 125 families were at two relief centres run by the Teluk Intan Municipal Council as of noon on Monday, with 288 at its rest house hall and 136 at Langkap Hall. Both centres opened on Nov 6, and the affected areas include several villages along Changkat Jong and Jalan Bidor.
Earlier on Monday, the Perak disaster management committee secretariat put the number of people displaced in the state at 439 from 130 families, up from 414 the previous night. That figure included 26 people sheltering at a community hall in Manjung after a storm. The Kinta River at Tanjung Tualang and the Bidor River at Changkat Jong were both above the danger level, and MetMalaysia forecast rain and thunderstorms in all districts of Perak in the afternoon and at night.
In Selangor, the situation continued to ease. Social Welfare Department data showed 215 people from 55 families at relief centres as of 8am on Monday, down from 507 a day earlier and far below the more than 1,200 evacuees recorded in the state last week. Most of those still displaced are in Kuala Selangor, while 47 people remain at the relief centre in Kampung Melayu Subang, Shah Alam, where bigger pumps were installed to drain floodwater.
The northeast monsoon typically brings the heaviest rain of the year to the east coast states from November, and floods in Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang often force thousands of people from their homes. MetMalaysia said the public can follow its latest warnings on its official website, its social media accounts and the myCuaca app.