PAPAR: Incessant downpour late Friday afternoon inundated housing and commercial areas here.
Residents were also met with power outages – a regular occurrence following cloudbursts – both of which they can expect more, at least until after the monsoon season is expected to be over in November.
It was a test of patience for patrons and shop owners alike who stayed at the Benoni Commercial Centre past 2pm.
The area was said to have faced its worst flooding since Phase 3 was launched in 2017, with the murky water covering the entire tyres of smaller vehicles. A disgruntled man from Taman Nagapas blamed deforestation caused by housing developments near his home for the flooding.
“I have been here for 10 years and this is the worst flooding to have happened. When I arrived home at 3pm, the street was already covered with one-foot deep water.
“I could not drive to my house due to the torrents and, instead, had to run to stop water from entering any further,” he told Daily Express.
The 31-year-old father said he had to build a temporary barrier with bricks to avoid the bigger hassle of a clean-up job. As of 6pm, rainfall was still ongoing in the district.
According to a Fire and Rescue Department report, residents of Kampung Tanaki took the initiative to move to higher grounds about 3pm.
“No temporary shelters have been opened yet,” an agency spokesperson said, adding five officers and personnel had supervised the escape.
Last month, The Federal Government announced RM34 million in allocations for a flood mitigation project for Papar.
Environment and Water Minister Datuk Seri Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man said works for a 1.15km beach barrier and erosion protection structure in Kampung Kuala Dalam with water control gates is expected to commence early 2023.
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