Monsoon rains in Malaysia: No let up till February

Straits Times 17 Dec 07;

KUANTAN - THE monsoon rains affecting Malaysia may not ease until February, according to the weather station.

'Malaysia, especially the east coast, is experiencing the peak of heavy monsoonal rains, which started on Dec 5,' said Mr Mohamad Helmi Abdullah, a weather forecaster at the Meteorological Department.

'There are likely to be several periods of heavy downpour between now and late January or early February,' he told AP.

And the flood situation in Pahang and Kelantan is also expected to get worse, with more rain expected for at least another four days.

The authorities in the two states have been put on 'red' alert - the highest alert - by the Meteorological Department.

As of 1pm yesterday, as many as 21,199 people have been evacuated from their homes, and were being housed in 199 relief centres.

In Kelantan, the number of displaced people increased to 4,112 yesterday morning, from 3,466 on Saturday, following rising water levels in Sungai Kelantan and Sungai Golok.

Flooding there also claimed its 13th victim, Bernama reported yesterday. A six-year-old girl was believed to have fallen into the flood waters while playing alone at her home.

Flood waters have receded in Johor and Terengganu, and reports said the number of evacuees in Johor has also fallen.

Deputy Prime Minister Najib Tun Rajak, who is chairman of the national disaster management committee, has urged parents to stop their children playing in flood waters.

He said many children regarded the flooding as a water carnival without realising the depth and the strength of the water currents.

Datuk Nik Aziz Nik Mat, Chief Minister of Kelantan, issued a similar caution.

'The death of one of the victims was not caused by the floods but because he jumped into the river for fun,' he was quoted as saying by the Malay-language Berita Harian newspaper.

Datuk Seri Najib said the local authorities had provided immediate aid to flood victims, and told security agencies to make all necessary preparations for possible rescue operations.

The government has been ferrying food and other essential items via airforce helicopters and boats to the badly hit areas, since supermarkets there are running out of supplies, the New Sunday Times newspaper said.

Malaysia has stepped up its flood mitigation efforts after suffering one of its worst monsoon floods last year, in which it suffered estimated losses of RM1.2 billion (S$523,000).

Flooding in Malaysia this year has so far left 21 people dead and made more than 29,000 others homeless.

The wet weather has also destroyed prawn and oyster farms worth at least RM150,000 in Johor .

Economists have warned that the rains could cause an increase in food and palm oil prices in Malaysia, one of the world's largest producers of the edible oil, which is used in products ranging from shampoo and ice-cream to biofuels.

Plantation officials say heavy rains have slowed down the harvest and transportation of palm oil.