The Selangor government will not be able to compensate all those affected by yesterday's flash flood, said Menteri Besar Dr Mohd Khir Toyo.

"We cannot compensate all the families. We will conduct a study first. If they ask compensation for damages from the government because of the rain, we cannot give because we have no financial source since the government wants to carry out development," he was quoted as saying by Bernama .

The menteri besar was speaking to reporters after visiting one of the flood-hit areas.

He said the state government will provide compensation to some of those in the Shah Alam area who need they money to clean their houses.

Yesterday's floods, touted as the worst in 10 years, followed usually heavy rainfall that lasted for five hours.

The affected areas were Taman Tun Dr Ismail Jaya, New Klang Valley Expressway at Bukit Jelutong, Kampung Landasan at Kampung Melayu Subang, the areas around Giant Hypermarket at Section 13, Kampung Kebun Bunga Batu Tiga and areas surrounding Makro supermarket.

More than 9,000 people were evacuated, over 3,000 houses were damaged and about 1,000 vehicles were submerged in the floods.

Nevertheless, water level at the worst-hit areas in Kampung Kebun Bunga Batu Tiga and Taman Tun Dr Ismail Jaya had started to recede.

Irrigation system

In a related development, Deputy Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak said plans must be drawn-up to upgrade the irrigation system to absorb the excess water during heavy rains.

"Given the unpredictable weather now, sometimes, rain pours in excess from the normal volume. This means, the capacity of the irrigation system must be upgraded," he added.

Najib, who is also National Disaster Relief and Management committee chairperson, said the federal government would discuss with the Selangor government to assist in addressing the serious flood woes in Shah Alam.

On allocations for flood mitigation projects, he said the federal government would consider the financial aid needed by the state government.