Various parts of Sarawak hit by floods, evacuation centres opened

DEVASTATING floods have hit numerous parts of  Sarawak, with people sending SOS messages from their flooded homes and those trapped in cars.

So far, four people have been confirmed dead in the  Kampung Lereng Bukit landslide in Miri city.

One woman is still missing in the house buried by tonnes of mud in the incident.

Seven others survived the landslide while about 350 have been evacuated into a community hall.

The Sarawak Fire and Rescue Department, in its latest reports, said Bomba stations in numerous districts have received non-stop calls for help from those trapped in flooded cars and houses.

"Our rescue units are responding to as many emergency calls as possible, but there are too many," said the department in its updates.

It confirmed that in the Miri landslide, two young girls, a teenage boy and a woman were found dead while another is still missing and believed buried in the mud.

Seven others survived from the crashed houses.

Those trapped in their flooded cars are in Bintulu, Tatau and Miri.

The State Disaster Management Committee said 15 districts have opened emergency evacuation centres as evacuations pick up pace.

Aside from the Bomba units, the Civil Defence Unit, army, police and other welfare bodies are helping.

The Meteorological Department has issued a red alert that heavy rain will be seen in almost the whole of Sarawak (see pic) from Kuching to Miri which is a distance of about 1,000 km.

The heavy rain alert is in effect until Jan 31. - January 29, 2025