BENTONG: The water surge incident in Telemong here on Saturday night due to heavy rain caused six residents in the area to be swept away by strong currents, while 10 others who were trapped in the flood were rescued.
One was found dead on Sunday, four more bodies were found yesterday and one is reported still missing.
During the incident, those who wanted to return home were said to have boarded several vehicles that were there and one of them sent a message via WhatsApp to family members asking for help.
The message was then spread to a group of residents of Felda Chemomoi village, Telemong, here last Saturday who immediately launched search and rescue efforts.
Relaying the story, a volunteer from Kampung Chemomoi, Mohd Aizuddin Othman, said in the message, the victim asked for help and told the villagers that they had gotten on the vehicle, before being swept away by the strong current.
“I received information that there were victims involved at about 5 pm and asked for help to save them, but soon they did not give any response,“ he told Bernama when met at Telemong here.
Kampung Abdul Ghani Taib, chairman of the Development and Security Committee, said the continuous heavy rains were believed to be the cause of the water surge in the area.
“From my house not far from the river, I saw logs starting to hit the road and houses around Telemong.
“I rushed to save the family because the water level rose so sharply and the water current was so strong at around 10 pm that night,“ he said.
Meanwhile, Razula Mohd Sidek said he and the villagers of Felda Chemomoi rushed to the scene to rescue the victims who were swept away by the floods with 10 four-wheel-drive vehicles.
“While I was on my way to the scene I found that the fire and rescue team had arrived but the route to the location was impassable due to landslides.
“Despite the landslide, we and the fire brigade tried to make our way to the scene because we had promised to try our best to save them,“ he said.
A check by Bernama found the area littered with thick mud, dust, log fragments and debris of shattered huts.
Yesterday (Dec 20), Bernama reported that four bodies of the victims were found, while the search and rescue operation for another victim who was believed to be missing continued today. — Bernama
