PETALING JAYA: Recent downpours due to the annual north-east monsoon have caused flooding in 14 districts in five states so far, says Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali.
The Minister in the Prime Minister's Department in charge of special functions and Sabah and Sarawak said six districts in Terengganu, three each in Perak and Pahang, and one each in Johor and Kelantan were still affected by floods.
"A total of 2,763 people from 834 households are currently seeking shelter in 22 temporary relief centres," he said in a statement on Tuesday (Dec 13).
ALSO READ: Weather expert forecasts 'significant flooding' within next three days
He added that he visited 339 victims from Kampung Batu Kapor who are currently seeking shelter at SMK Seri Semantan in Temerloh.
He noted that Temerloh has the highest risk of flooding out of 11 districts in Pahang.
"Temerloh has 124 flood risk areas or 22% of all the 554 risk areas in Pahang," he said.
Citing forecasts from the Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia), Armizan said between four and six monsoon surges are likely to occur during the season which started in mid-November and is expected to last till March.
On Monday (Dec 12), the Irrigation and Drainage Department's (DID) National Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre issued a warning of possible flash floods within 24 hours in six states – Penang, Negri Sembilan, Perak, Selangor, Terengganu and Pahang.
ALSO READ: DID issues warning of possible flash floods in six states
Also on Monday, local meteorological expert Professor Datuk Dr Azizan Abu Samah of the National Antarctica Research Centre also warned of significant flooding within the next three days due to heavy monsoon rain triggered by the active La Nina and negative Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) phenomena.
Meanwhile, Armizan advised residents living in flood-prone areas not to delay evacuation if ordered to do so by the authorities.
He noted that the Civil Defence Force is empowered by law to evacuate flood victims to relief centres if needed for safety reasons.
He said members of the public who need information and weather advisories should visit https://publicinfobanjir.water.gov.my/ on the Internet, PublicInfoBanjir on Facebook, @JPS_InfoBanjir on Twitter, or download the myCuaca application.
