Nearly 4,000 Johor flood victims displaced
They are seeking shelter at 53 temporary relief centres in several districts
JOHOR BARU: Johor has recorded almost 4,000 victims currently seeking shelter at 53 temporary flood relief centres in seven of the state's flood-affected districts.
In a statement, the Johor Disaster Management committee said the most affected district was Mersing with 1,262 victims followed by Kota Tinggi with 1,071 victims and Kluang with 1,053 victims.
"There are two roads in Kota Tinggi that have been closed down due to the floods, namely Jalan Kampung Tunjuk Dalam near Ladang Bukit Kelompok and Ladang Bukit Payong, and Jalan Dalam Kampung Mawai Lama," it said.
Meanwhile, Kota Tinggi district police chief, Superintendent Ashmon Bajah, said a bus broke down while trying to cross a flooded road in Batu 18, Jalan Kota Tinggi-Mersing.
He said: "There were no casualties reported."
The Johor government has allocated RM1.1 million (S$360,000) to help those affected by the floods.
Menteri Besar Sahruddin Jamal said the federal government has also approved an additional allocation of RM500,000. He added that the government's priority was to ensure the safety of all victims and rescue operation teams during this challenging period.
"I have also been told that the situation is likely to go on for some time and water levels in some areas are steadily increasing. We can all play our part to ensure everyone's safety," he said.
Dr Sahruddin said this after handing out aid in the form of daily necessities to the flood victims housed at SK Sedili Kechil, one of 13 temporary relief centres in the district yesterday.
Over in Sarawak, floods in its remote areas have left victims with no cooking gas and wet firewood. Most are surviving on dry goods such as biscuits.
The Star yesterday received a message from Kampung Kuala Tutoh, where a 72-door longhouse has been inundated with 0.7m of water.
The village's Lakiput Association senior member Michael Ding said cooking is a problem as the floods have cut off all the roads and cooking gas cannot be replenished.
"Travelling by boat is also dangerous as the rivers have swelled and are raging," he said.
Mr Ding said welfare authorities have sent packages of dry food to the flooded settlement.
"Dry food like biscuits and canned food come in handy but we urgently need cooking gas," he said. - THE STAR
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