Temerloh: Spirit of generosity and tenacity not dampened by the floods

Malay Mail
by MELISSA CHI

TEMERLOH, Dec 29 ― The sight of massive treetops at eye level, front doors of homes and windows almost completely submerged, and men rowing from one point to another on a makeshift raft seemed like a scene from a movie.

But this was Temerloh, the second largest town in Pahang.

With the fourth wave of the northeasterly monsoon expected to slam into the east coast this morning, Pahang remains one of the worst-hit states.

The number of evacuees climbed to over 33,000 peiople as of 8pm yesterday. Three deaths were reported yesterday including one in Temerloh.

“I don't dare to leave with my grandchildren now. The current is too strong,” 46-year-old Siti Faridah told Malay Mail Online yesterday at one of the evacuation centres on Jalan Kampung Kerai.

Carrying her one-year-old granddaughter, she said about 30 over people from the village have been surviving on boiled bananas and a bit of rice since Friday.

“There is not enough food for all of us. We can use a makeshift raft and row our way to shops but the supplies had already been cleared out,” she said in a slight northern Malay accent at the evacuation centre which is actually a small hut.

Some of them have even had to sleep out in the open at night.

One of her other grandchildren said the family of 16 left their home in a hurry on Thursday night for their neighbour's house. But by Friday morning, they had to find a raft and row their way to the nearest evacuation centre as even the neighbour's house was not spared from the rising floodwaters.

The group also said the supplies received yesterday were inadequate, leaving them in need of more food and medication.

Yesterday, Malay Mail Online spent eight hours with the Temerloh Fire and Rescue Department to reach out to flood victims as well as deliver food supplies to residents along the Pahang river, which has already doubled in size.

The drop-off yesterday consisted of 300 bags ― each containing a tin of biscuits, teabags, 5kg of rice, sugar, salt and two cans of sardines ― to five evacuation centres sponsored by the Social Welfare Department Malaysia (JKMM) as well as Kerdau assemblyman Datuk Syed Ibrahim Syed Ahmad who helped with the distribution.

Many of the evacuees said their food supplies were almost exhausted. For most of them, road access has been cut off for the past five days.

After receiving the food supplies at Kampung Galok near Kampung Kerai, one man asked his elected representative, Syed Ibrahim: “Will you come back today?”

“No, there are still many more evacuation centres to go to,” the assemblyman replied.

The man explained that there were families who have not registered in time for the aid.

In Pahang alone, nine towns are affected by the floods. Electricity and water supply have been disconnected for safety reasons in many areas for the past few days.

One lucky family in Kampung Peragap, however, had stocked up enough food and supplies before they were hit hard by the floods and miraculously still had electricity and water as of yesterday.

“I don't think what we have is enough for another week though. By then, we would have to rely on aid,” one woman said.

Even with such scarcity, the family that is already hosting four other families with almost 30 people under one roof, offered Malay Mail Online journalists a simple yet delicious lunch with sardines, pumpkin gulai, fried fish and sambal with rice.

The same woman, who did not want to be named, said she was concerned that electricity and water would be cut off because they saw that the utility pole nearby had fallen over.

Many villages are still not accessible by road and the only other way out is by boat, which must be slowly maneuvered around trees, logs and other debris washed from the river.

Temerloh Fire and Rescue Department Chief Hashnuddin Hussin led the rescue mission yesterday and told Malay Mail Online that his department has 40 men on operation in 10 boats.

He said the Royal Malaysia Police, the Malaysian Armed Forces, the Malaysian Civil Defence (JPA) also contributed boats for the daily flood operations although he was unsure of the total number.

“I think operations at this scale will continue for another week or so,” he said.

Syed Ibrahim, who is also the state executive councillor, said although there is enough food supplies, the lack of boats and helicopters to transport the goods to the flood victims remain a huge challenge.

Yesterday's trip was only to send out food items, which are expected to last the evacuees three days before another round has to be sent. Meanwhile, evacuees are expected to receive bottles of mineral water today.

Pahang, Kelantan and Terengganu have been the worst hit with more than 30,000 evacuated from each state since last week. So far, 10 deaths have been recorded.

Senior meteorologist at the National Weather Centre Dr Mohd Hisham Mohd Anip told Malay Mail Online the fourth wave of continuous rain is expected to start last night or this morning with Johore and parts of Pahang expected to receive  the heaviest rainfall.

He noted, however, it will not be as severe as in the previous days.