Malaysia Flood update & East coast states totally cut off

Kelantan is the worst hit state. The flood situation in Kelantan is still critical with five districts in serious situation following the disruption of basic amenities caused by floods.

Widespread misery: Floodwaters covering a vast area in Pengkalan Chepa, Kelantan. — EPA

The Star reported that:

Access to the country’s flood-hit east coast states is now almost totally cut off after waters submerged many of the main roads to the affected areas.

The number of evacuees also rose by nearly 40,000 overnight as the Meteorological Department warned of a new round of heavy rains lasting until Wednesday.

A total of 200,023 evacuees are currently seeking shelter at more than 500 relief centres in five states, up from 160,921 on Saturday.

As at 6.30pm yesterday, Kelantan remained the worst-hit state with the number of victims rising to 124,966 from 81,925 the day before.

Terengganu had 36,410 evacuees, Pahang (33,601), Perak (4,581) and Johor (465).

The Meteorological Department issued a three-day “yellow” stage alert from today for Perlis, Kedah, north Perak, Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang and Johor.

The alert, which warns of the possibility of monsoon rains and heavy winds, also covers Kudat and Sandakan in Sabah as well as Kuching, Samarahan, Sri Aman, Sarikei, Sibu, Mukah and Betong in Sarawak.

In KUANTAN, Temerloh has been effectively cut off to land vehicles after a section of the East Coast Expressway became severely flooded.

According to the Pahang Public Works Department, several trunk roads leading to and from the district were also inaccessible to all vehicles.

Main roads from Temerloh to Bera and Jerantut have also been closed after the water level rose to more than a metre high.

New school term will start a week later due to floods

The Star reported that:

The new school session will start a week later nationwide due to the severe floods, Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said on Monday.

In a statement, Muhyiddin who is also the Education Minister said for states in Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu and Johor, the new term will begin on Jan 11 (Sunday) while for other states, the session starts on Jan 12 (Monday).

He noted that as of Sunday, 340 schools in seven states were affected by the floods. According to him, some of these schools were used as flood relief centres and others were inundated by the deluge.

East Coast floods - Update

Yesterday, I posted about the monsoon and the floods that come with it. It seems the flood situation has turned for the worse as more areas in the country are being affected so much so New Year celebrations scheduled at Putrajaya and Perak have been cancelled.

The celebration in Putrajaya is supposed to be a planned mega new year celebration. The events have been cancelled in respect of the thousands affected by flood in several states.


Kemaman in Terengganu..

Kemaman is the worst affected of the districts, with 19,405 evacuees from 4,607 families.

The Star reported today that some 90,250 people have been evacuated as at 9am Thursday in five states ravaged by floods which are showing no sign of letting up.

Fifteen more stretches of road in Kelantan had been closed, raising to 37 the roads impassable to traffic due to the floods. In Kota Bharu, several patients at the Raja Perempuan Zainab II Hospital old wing were evacuated due to rising flood waters early Thursday.

In PAHANG, Kuantan had the highest number of evacuees at 14,350 from 4,119 families, now housed at 44 relief centres. The worst-hit districts are Kemaman followed by Dungun, Kuala Terengganu, Hulu Terengganu, Besut and Marang.

The Maran district has 2,744 evacuees at 17 centres; Jerantut, 2,478 at 34 centres; Lipis, 2,319 at 26 centres; Pekan, 1,402 at 18 centres; Temerloh, 649 at 15 centres; Rompin, 265 at four centres and Bera, 109 at four centres.

In PERAK, people moved out of their homes in the three districts of Kuala Kangsar, Hulu Perak and Perak Tengah rose to 4,335 from 1,079 families.

Deep trouble: A victim wading through floodwaters at Kampung Lembah Sireh in Kota Baru.

Hitting the roof: Taman Bukit Sirih residents surveying the flood situation using a float in Kuala Krai. — Bernama

The situation in most flood-hit states continues to worsen with the authorities warning of continuing heavy rain in the badly-hit states of Kelantan and Terengganu.

The Star reported that Kelantan is now only accessible via the Kuala Terengganu-Kota Baru trunk road and by air.

The other route to Kelantan through the East West Highway was closed to all traffic after part of the highway at the 65th kilometre near Puncak Titiwangsa collapsed.

The Gua Musang-Kuala Krai road has been closed to all traffic while the route from Padang Besar through Haadyai was also impassable due to the floods.

Elsewhere - In Sabah, the situation improved slightly with most of the evacuees allowed to return home yesterday morning.

In Perlis, there was not much change in the flood situation and 175 people were still seeking shelter at evacuation centres.

The 102 tourists trapped at the Mutiara Taman Negara Resort in Kuala Tahan heaved a sigh of relief when the Fire and Rescue Department arrived with much needed food supplies.

The department sent more than four boatloads of food supplies for the tourists and residents in the area. Safe and sound, the tourists would be transported by boat to relief centres in Kuala Tahan before being flown by helicopter to Jerantut town.

Apart from Malaysians, the tourists were from Germany, France, Canada and the Czech Republic.

Source: The Star

Moonsoon floods in the East Coast, Taman Negara, Kajang and more

The monsoon is upon us again this time of the year. If you are planning to visit Malaysia - the east coast states on the peninsula - avoid the months of November and December. This year, the monsoon rains are unusually heavy causing bad flooding in the States of Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang.

Needless to say, the islands of Redang and Perhentian would experience low tourism rate this time of the year. I suspect Clud Med as well being located in the state of Pahang.

The Star today report that.. The floods in Kelantan and Terengganu worsened yesterday afternoon as more victims were being evacuated.

Rescue effort..

In Terengganu, chalet guests were told to move out due to strong waves..

A group of holidaymakers faced a terrifying moment when their chalet almost collapsed due to strong waves.

Even the National Park, Taman Negara has not been spared as the park recorded its highest rainfall Tuesday since the major flood in 1971.

The Star reported that:

More than 100 local and foreign tourists are believed to be stranded at the Mutiara Taman Negara Resort after Sungai Tembeling in Kuala Tahan surpassed its danger level.

The Kuala Tahan tourist jetty had to be closed due to swift currents in the river, which is dangerous to boats.

A resort employee, who declined to be identified, said the foreign tourists holed up in the hotel were from Canada, Germany, France and Holland while there were also some local tourists.

"They should have left today (Tuesday) but the dangerous river has cut off the place from the outside world and we are running low on food. Nonetheless, we ensure the safety and well-being of tourists and if necessary, we will use a helicopter to drop food for us tomorrow," he said when contacted late Tuesday.

According to him, a special meeting with police and Jerantut district office was held to discuss measures to get all tourists out safely. – Bernama

Even Kajang town was not spared. Known for its satay, Kajang some twenty miles south of Kuala Lumpur was inundated with flash floods last Saturday. A Christmas party at the Malaysia Independent Animal Rescue (MIAR) shelter in Kajang turned gloomy when floods overcame the facility, drowning some dogs and injuring volunteers.

Meantime, it has been reported that floods has worsened in six states sending 58,705 people in these six states to evacuation centres as Wednesday/this morning.

Menteri Besar of Perak Datuk Seri Dr. Zambry Abd Kadir (fourth from right) reviewing the situation in Kampung Labit.

Monsoon brings floods to Terengganu

If you are thinking about making a trip to the east coast of Peninsula Malaysia, particularly Terengganu and Kelantan, you may want to wait awhile. Below is an image from The Star today showing the flood situation in Terengganu.

This shows Residents working together to move a floating car after it got stranded in the floods at Kuala Nerus

Malaysia goes through two monsoon periods a year and currently it's the Northeastern monsoon season resulting in increased rainfall and flooding in the two states of Terengganu and Kelantan.

Tourist numbers to Pulau Redang and Pulau Perhentian also take a dip this time of the year.

However, if you'd still prefer a beach holiday on the east coast, there's still Pulau Tioman or Club Med Cherating, the latter is now open all-year round.

Flash floods wreaked havoc in Kuala Lumpur yesterday

Malaysia, not having any active volcano on her soil, does not go through the experience of any volcanic activity. However, visitors to Kuala Lumpur must have had an unpleasant experience yesterday if they happened to be in parts of KL that were affected by flash floods after a thunderstorm in the evening.

Nothing to be proud of, these floods in the city centre, but we could do better, of course. A couple of pictures here on the flash floods in KL to expand on the story.

Weather is not expected to improve today according to the Met department.

Still, enjoy your visit with us! Welcome to Malaysia, Truly Asia!

Floods worsen in east coast states

If you plan on visiting the east coast of Peninsula Malaysia, best to avoid this time of the year. It is the monsoon season now causing floods to occur with the heavy rainfall.

The east coast states include Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang. Popular resort islands of Pulau Perhentian and Pulau Redang are also on the east coast (off Terengganu), so is Club Med which is in Pahang. Club Med is closed from end of September through February due to the monsoon.

The above picture from The Star shows motorists forcing their way through a flooded road in Kuantan on Tuesday. (NIK NAIZI HUSIN/Starpix)

The Star reported that:

The flood situation in Terengganu, Kelantan and Pahang has worsened with more than 10,800 people evacuated to flood relief centres as of Tuesday evening from 6,000 in the morning.

In Terengganu, 5,297 victims are now housed in shelters while in the Kelantan, the number rose to 3,218 people, according the the official websites of their respective state governments.
More: The Star..Floods worsen in east coast states, 10,800 evacuated

Penang hit by flood

In Penang, thousands of residents in low-lying areas woke up early yesterday to find water had flowed into their homes.

A downpour which started at 3am caused parts of Jalan P. Ramlee, Jalan Sungai Pinang, Jalan Patani, Jalan Air Itam and Jalan Datuk Keramat to be submerged in water.

Source: The Star
The water rose to knee-deep levels in several areas, and a high tide made the situation worse.

At least 3,000 people, mainly those living in the flood-prone areas of Datuk Keramat and Jalan P. Ramlee, were affected by the flood.

More:
- Flash flood in Penang
- A rude awakening

Kuantan is flooded

KUANTAN: The total number of flood victims at relief centres in Kuantan and Pekan increased to 805 people from 409 Friday morning.

According to a Pahang Police Headquarters Flood Operations Room spokesman, as at 5pm today, the number of victims evacuated in Kuantan district to four relief centres increased to 545 from 153 families.

The Kuantan-Sungai Lembing trunk road is still under one meter of water at KM30 and is closed to all traffic. More.. Floods hit Kuantan, Pekan; 805 evacuated

Massive floods hit Kuching, Sarawak

In Kuching, Sarawak, continuous downpour over the last 12 hours coupled with the king tide phenomena has led to heavy flooding in various parts of the city, bringing the morning rush hour traffic to a standstill.

In Kuching, Sarawak, the morning rush hour traffic was brought to a standstill in various parts of the city caused by massive flooding after continuous downpour over the last 12 hours. More..Kuching hit by massive floods

This picture shows a car being caught in flood waters near the former government quarters area in Batu Lintang. Photo by Andrew Voon.

However, over in Kuala Lumpur, the weather is hot with temperatures hovering around 90deg F, blue skies and a gentle breeze, all signalling the approach of the Chinese New Year or the Spring festival which falls on Jan 23 which also begins the new lunar year of the Dragon.

Flooding in Kajang

The monsoon has not only caused flooding in the east coast, Kajang, a town south of Kuala Lumpur, was also submerged in flood waters this afternoon after torrential rain that broke a river bank.

Read more about the Kajang floods here.

Image source: The Star

More flee from floods in Kelantan

Each year, the north-east Monsoon brings heavy downpour and with it the floods in the north and north-eastern states. This year is no exception.

The number of flood victims in Kelantan has risen to 1,892, from 1,420 on Thursday as a result of continuous rain. Pasir Mas remains the worst affected district with 16 evacuation centres opened with the number of evacuation centres in the state being increased from 28 yesterday to 32 this morning.
More..

North-east Monsoon season is here again

The north-east monsoon season is here again this time of the year. Schools were out for the year last Friday, so final exams will not be affected. In fact, the government has moved final exams forward so as to avoid them being affected by the floods which usually happens in the north-eastern states of Kelantan and Terangganu.

The Met Department has issued a yellow alert for heavy rain and thunderstorms in Kelantan, Terengganu, Penang and Kedah. The yellow alert is the first of three warnings where a monsoonal surge is possible in the next 24 to 48 hours.

A first category warning was also issued of which strong winds and rough seas expected to occur over the waters off Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang, East Johor, Sabah and Sarawak.

The department also warned that intermittent rain from today to Thursday may cause flooding in low-lying areas and also strong winds and flash floods.

Strong northeasterly winds of 40 to 50 kph with waves of up to 3.5m were expected over the waters off Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang, East Johor, Sarawak, Labuan, Sabah (Interior, West Coast and Kudat), Samui, Condore, Reef North, Layang-Layang, Tioman, Bunguran, Reef South and Palawan until Nov 29. These strong winds and rough seas are dangerous to small craft and recreational sea activities. Source: The Star..Weatherman issues monsoonal surge alert for four states

In Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, heavy rains have triggered landslip and flooding.

Flooding in Kedah caused by long downpour

Many villages in Kedah were flooded after a 24-hour downpour that left 100 houses affected. The areas affected in Baling included Kampung Raja, Kampung Tanah Periuk, Kampung Seberang Ketil, Kampung Banggol Chicar, Kampung Belakang Market Lama, Kampung Tengah and Kampung Padang Cina.

Source: The Star

Tropical storm Nock-Ten causes havoc

The Star reported of storms killing over 50 in the Philippines and S. Korea, rain expected here. Nock-Ten named after a Laotian bird, is expected to cause more damage in the northern areas of Luzon island while bringing heavy rain to Manila. At least 25 people died and as many as 31 others went missing as a slow-moving tropical storm dumped enormous amounts of rain across the Philippines main island.

The image below shows cars stranded on a submerged street in Seoul as 400mm of rainfall pounded Seoul yesterday. At least 28 people were killed.

However in Malaysia, Nock-Ten is expected to bring rain and strong winds to northern Sabah, Pahang and Selangor over the next two days. The MET assured the public no need to panic over the tropical storm as Malaysia would only experience its indirect effects.
More on Storms kill over 50 in the Philippines and S. Korea, rain expected here

Related article:
Tropical storm Nock-Ten expected to hit three states over next two days


Image source: The Star

Floods hit Thailand

If you are planning to head out on a holiday to southern Thailand this period, especially on one of the islands off the coast, you may want to hold on to your plan for now. Read updates from The Star..

BANGKOK (AP): Thailand's navy used helicopters and an aircraft carrier on Thursday to rescue more than 800 tourists stranded by heavy rains on the country's picturesque southern islands.

Nearly a week of torrential rains has caused flooding and landslides in southern Thailand that killed at least 17 Thais and left tourists stranded on islands in the Andaman Sea and Gulf of Thailand, where ferry services were canceled due to rough water.

The flooding has affected 840,000 people in eight southern provinces and inundated 61 highways, the Department of Disaster Prevention said Thursday.

Some 730 travelers, mostly foreigners, spent the night camped on mats aboard the HTMS Chakri Naruebet, the Royal Thai Navy's sole aircraft carrier, after being evacuated from the island of Koh Tao, according to a statement from the navy and Thai television news reports.

The navy said it also rescued more than a hundred people from other islands including Koh Phangan, known for its raucous all-night beach bash, the Full Moon Party.

Thai TV coverage showed parents clutching their babies on the aircraft carrier's deck and smiling backpackers giving a thumbs-up and taking pictures of their military rescue.

US, Australian, French, British and Russian citizens were among those rescued, the Tourism Ministry said. They were being transported to destinations such as Bangkok and Pattaya.

Airlines resumed service to the resort island of Samui after its international airport was closed for several days.

Thailand's weather bureau forecast the rain would stop this weekend but warned of wind and 6-foot (2-meter) waves, making it unsafe for small boats.


Source: The Star

Related article:
Floods hit northern state of Perlis

Floods hit northern state of Perlis

The northern state of Perlis has been hit by floods following continuous rain since Monday night. As many as 20 relief centers have been set up to house some 1300 evacuees. The worst hit is Kangar.

In Padang Besar, 380 flood victims were evacuated to eight areas and in Arau, 44 people were evacuated.

Source: The Star.. 1,294 flee floods in Perlis

Flood situation in Johore

Though flood waters have receded in some places allowing people to return to their home in Johore, parts of the state is still flooded.

In Muar, Sawiyah Salleh, a villager at Kampung Tanjung Olak near Johor, rows a sampan daily from the relief centre to her flooded home to ensure it is safe and sound.

The 52-year-old said she rowed the sampan from the roadside to her house, located about 30m away from the Jorak Tanjung Olak road.

Full story and flood update..The Star - Villager rows to her home every day to make sure it’s safe and sound

Train services restored on most routes

In a statement, Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) said two train services were cancelled Wednesday, the Ekspres Sinaran Selatan from Kuala Lumpur Sentral-Singapore and the Gemas-Singapore-Gemas shuttle.

KTMB advised passengers affected by the cancellation to change their travel date or claim their ticket refund at the nearest KTM Intercity counter.

Meanwhile, repair works to restore the damaged tracks on the South and East Coast sectors are expected to take another two days to complete, weather permitting and flood conditions at the locations.

As reported in The Star, the following train services have been rescheduled:

* Ekspres Rakyat: Butterworth-Singapore-Butterworth (service from Butterworth-Kuala Lumpur Sentral-Butterworth only)

* Ekspres Sinaran Selatan: Singapore-Kuala Lumpur Sentral (Singapore to Labis only)

* Ekspres Sinaran Timur: Singapore-Tumpat-Singapore (Tumpat-Gemas-Tumpat only)

* Ekspres Senandung Sutera: Singapore-Kuala Lumpur Sentral-Singapore (Singapore-Labis-Singapore only)

* Ekspres Senandung Timuran: Singapore-Tumpat (Singapore to Labis only)

* Ekspres Senandung Timuran: Tumpat-Singapore (Tumpat to Triang only)

* Shuttle service: Kuala Lipis-Singapore-Kuala Lipis (Kuala Lipis-Gemas-Kuala Lipis only)

For enquiries and further information, the public can call KTMB's Customer Service Centre at 1-300-88-5862. - Bernama

Update on Flood situation in Johore - Water, water everywhere

The flood in the southern state of Johore is causing havoc in many towns. Intercity rail service has been cancelled while in Segamat, power has been disconnected to prevent electrocution.

Get update on the flood situation.