On Friday (4 October) evening, residents of Kampung Iboi, Baling were rudely awakened by a flash flood that landed in the village. This is the fourth time in the year the village has been hit by floods.
According to Bernama, village headman Nor Mohamad Che Hussain said the heavy downpour started at about 4.30 pm and the water began to enter their homes at 7 pm, forcing the residents to move to the temporary relocation centre (PPS).
“Prior to this, the PPS was at the Kampung Padang Empang hall. But the flood victims had to be moved to another PPS because there were incidents where wild animals would damage the tents housing the flood victims,” he said.
Meanwhile, Baling Civil Defence Force (APM) officer Mohd Faizol Ab Aziz said that 42 victims from 15 families were evacuated to the Dewan Surau Ittifaqiyah PPS in the village as of 11 pm. He added that the number of victims is expected to increase while the efforts to transfer the affected residents are still ongoing.
Mohd Faizol explained that the heavy downpour in the Baling district had led to Sungai Kupang bursting its banks at Kampung Padang Empang and Kampung Iboi.
He added that the heavy downpour lasted until 10 pm and the flood water did not subside, while the river is on alert level. Nonetheless, he said the new PPS location was much safer because the area is surrounded by a wall.
Flooding across the country
Apart from Kampung Iboi, there were several other villages across the country that are facing the risk of floods.
According to Berita Harian, villages from Kampung Padang Empang were brought to the shelter. At the same time, villagers from Mukim Siong, Baling, and Pulai are also advised to stay vigilant when there’s heavy rain and flooding.
Over in Perak, it was reported that 50 villagers from Kampung Cheh, Kampung Senduk Hulu, Kampung Bukit Cempedak and Kampung Changkat Ibol in Bukit Gantang, Taiping, were caught in a flash flood on Friday evening.
While in Terengganu, nine university students aged 23 to 24, were rescued by a team of policemen and firefighters after being trapped by a water surge at a popular picnic spot at Lata Ulu Kelabu, Setiu, around 5 pm on Friday.
 evening, residents of Kampung Iboi, Baling were rudely awakened by a flash flood that landed in the village. This is the fourth time in the year the village has been hit by floods.){kind=link}