Settlements around Sg Kupang, Baling, no longer safe - NGO
The settlements around Sungai Kupang in Baling are no longer safe after flash floods hit Kampung Iboi for the second time yesterday, said environmental group Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM).
Its advisor, Sik Mohd Sobri Ramlee, said the residents raised increasing concerns after the second wave of floods struck the area on Monday.
The settlements around Sungai Kupang in Baling are no longer safe after flash floods hit Kampung Iboi for the second time yesterday, said environmental group Sahabat Alam Sik.
Its advisor, Mohd Sobri Ramlee, said the residents raised increasing concerns after the second wave of floods struck the area on Monday.
He said the flood caused a bailey bridge linking Kampung Iboi and Kampung Masjid Iboi to be swamped.
"In the first incident on July 4, many houses were left covered with mud due to (floods resulting from) heavy rains upstream.
"Settlements around Sungai Kupang are at risk of being swept away by the mud," he told Malaysiakini today.
Mohd Sobri said some immediate measures such as evacuating residents at risk to temporary flood evacuation centres or providing temporary housing.
He said while there are those affected by the floods which had been evacuated, others are still at risk.
At the same time, Mohd Sabri would like the government to assist villagers who lost important documents, such as land grants, vehicle grants, birth certificates and identity cards, to the flood.
"(The government can) issue a comprehensive report on the flood cause to make it easier for the relevant authorities to carry out necessary works.
"If the retention pond in the Musang King project is at high risk, the authorities should remove the water and mud from the pool. Make sure there is clean water, access roads and electricity supplied to the houses," he said.
According to a video published by Malay daily Kosmo, rising rapid, silt-laden waters almost burst Sungai Kupang's river banks yesterday.
On July 4, Kampung Iboi was buried under wood debris and sludge, with some houses completely washed away. The floods displaced more than 1,000 people.
The bodies of a pregnant woman and her mother-in-law were found hugging under a pile of wood debris, while the older woman's teenage son was found dead nearby.
Preliminary investigations by the Environment and Water Ministry found at least one catchment pond in a durian plantation upstream from the village had broken.
The Musang King plantation is located on a steep incline.
It was reported that there was double the rainfall upstream in the Gunung Inas Forest Reserve water catchment area, where the plantation is located.
Kampung Iboi neighbours the forest reserve.
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