KENINGAU: Some 112 residents of Mukim Ansip in the Pensiangan parliamentary area were evacuated to the Temporary Evacuation Centre (PPS) in SK Ansip on Tuesday for safety reasons due to flash floods.
Works Deputy Minister Datuk Arthur Joseph Kurup said continuous heavy rain since Tuesday evening caused the river water level to rise and posed danger to the residents in the vicinity.
He said the relevant agencies led by the District Office took appropriate action to shift the affected families, including the elderly, disabled and children, to the SK Ansip hall,” he said during a visit to the PPS.
Arthur also handed over cash and daily necessities to 51 heads of households to help ease their burden.
Meanwhile, in BEAUFORT, a family of eight, including children, requested for assistance from the Fire and Rescue Services Department to evacuate them to a safer place after floods hit Kg Seliwangan.
“They didn’t want to be moved to the Temporary Evacuation Centre and, instead, wanted to be moved to a relative’s place,” said Beaufort Fire and Rescue Services Chief Mohammad Hasbullah Nenggok.
He said the floods entered their house, prompting the family to call the department for help.
He added that a number of houses in the district were hit after the water in Padas River swelled and overflowed, flooding several low-lying places.
“Thirty-six villages were impacted by the floods, including 10 in the Klias constituency and the rest in the Lumadan constituency.
“Several schools were also closed due to the floods, including SM St. Paul, Sekolah Agama Negeri Limbawang, SK Lago, SK Suasa and Sekolah Kebangsaan Bukau,” he said.
He added that several flooded roads were rendered impassable such as Kg Bingkul, Simpang Tiga Chan Furniture, Jalan Bomba at Klias and Lumadan’s Jalan Bukau.
Meanwhile, the flood situation in Sipitang and Keningau districts has fully recovered, and evacuees who were housed in four temporary evacuation centres (PPS) were allowed to return home Wednesday night.
The Sabah Disaster Management Committee Secretariat, in a statement, said only 528 people from 162 families are still accommodated in seven PPS in three districts, namely Tenom, Beaufort and Kunak.
In Tenom, a district in the interior of the state, a total of 443 people from 139 families are housed in five PPS.
PPS at Rumah Kebudayaan Makakagas houses 117 people from 32 families; Rumah Kebudayaan Kalang Kanar (29 people, seven families); Rumah Kebudayaan Gunting (33 people, seven families); Rumah Kebudayaan Pagukon (214 people, 78 families); and Tenom Sports Complex (50 people, 15 families).
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