ISLAMABAD/BATU PAHAT: Flooding resulting from days of torrential rain forced almost 40,000 citizens to flee their houses in Malaysia’s southern Johor state, bordering Singapore. At least four citizens have died during the previous week, officials said on Saturday.
“We used to prepare for the rainy period in November and December,” Mohd Noor Saad, a resident of the town of Yong Peng in Johor’s Batu Pahat district, said to Reuters. “Each household had the boat, but now with the unpredictable weather, it seems we are unprepared, and it’s become chaotic.”
Citizens displaced by the floods
A national disaster management agency said that authorities established more than 200 relief shelters for citizens displaced by the floods. Floods in Malaysia are expected during the annual monsoon season between October and March, but a downpour this week left several Johor residents scrambling to find shelter.
Carrying belongings out of her home in thigh-high water, cafe employee Kabibah Siam said she resigned to fending for herself during the floods. She said that “What can we do? We can’t complain about our fate because everyone is in the same boat here,”
While Johor was worst-hit, flooding in other states displaced hundreds of citizens. A meteorological department warned of more rain in the coming days, mainly in the southern states.
