PAITAN: Civil Defence Force personnel had to travel 30km on foot and another 24km by river to reach villagers in the district cut off by floods following heavy rains since March 9.
Paitan District Civil Defence Officer Lieutenant Bakrin Shamsudin said rescue and evacuation operations were carried out continuously, with priority given to areas that were cut off and identified as high risk.
He said a total of 47 flood victims from 11 households were evacuated to the Kg Batangon Darat Community Centre at 11am, Tuesday.
Several main roads and village access routes were rendered impassable, including Jalan Meridien and the connecting road to Kampung Batangon Darat.
“Rescue personnel have had to make their way on foot and by boat along the river to assist in evacuating residents trapped in flood-affected areas,” Bakrin told Daily Express.
The Paitan Disaster Operations Control Centre was activated on March 10, ahead of the official flood disaster declaration made on the same day.
Several temporary evacuation centres have been opened to accommodate flood victims, including at the Kampung Batangon Darat Community Centre, PCS Church in Kampung Purubatu, Masjid Nur Hikmah in Kampung Kaindangan, the SK Lubang Buaya Hall and the Paitan District Office Open Hall.
More than 30 villages have been reported cut off by the flooding, among them Kampung Batangon Laut, Kampung Simpangan, Kampung Dalamas, Kampung Purubatu, Kampung Kaindangan, Kampung Tanjung Nipis and Kampung Obah.
Bakrin urged affected residents to move immediately to evacuation centres or safer locations, and to avoid travelling through flooded routes to prevent untoward incidents.
