Picking up the pieces: Ros Mela Abd Gani (centre), 55, moving furniture damaged by the floods with her sons Muhammad Shahrudin Mohd Naser (left), 27, and Muhammad Sharul Aiman (right), 19, in Kampung Pasir Tebrau. — Bernama
JOHOR BARU: With floodwaters receding across affected districts in Johor, authorities have launched a large-scale cleanup operation to clear debris and assist residents in rebuilding their lives, especially with Hari Raya just around the corner.
Deputy state secretary Datuk On Jabbar said the government has deployed over 3,000 Johor Southern Volunteers since Saturday to aid in the cleanup efforts.
“The majority of our volunteers are young people, including university students, youth group members, residents’ committee members, and government employees from various agencies and departments.
“We are using government assets such as water jets and lorries to facilitate the operation,” he said yesterday.
Currently, volunteers are focused on flood-affected areas in Johor Baru before moving on to other districts.
“Our cleanup operation begins at 9am as we aim to finish early so our Muslim volunteers can return home in time to break their fast. Our goal is to complete the cleanup before Hari Raya,” On added.
SWM Environment Sdn Bhd corporate general manager Mohd Norlisam Mohd Nordin said favourable weather conditions have allowed them to collect over 30,000kg of flood waste since post-flood operations began on Friday.
“We have deployed various machinery, including roll-on roll-off lorries, water jet lorries, ultra whack lorries, and backhoes, to assist with the cleanup.
“The operation covers 15 flood-affected locations in Johor Baru, Iskandar Puteri, Pontian and Kulai,” he said.
Mohd Norlisam added that they are working closely with local councils and SWCorp, and are on standby to extend assistance to other flood-affected districts, including Kota Tinggi, Batu Pahat and Kluang.
Meanwhile, livestock farmer Osman Cheyakutty, 55, suffered over RM300,000 in losses after floodwaters submerged his goat farm in Kangkar Tebrau on Thursday.
“Alhamdulillah, our goats were not affected as their pens are located on higher ground. However, we suffered significant losses, particularly with our stock of frozen goat meat,” he said.
The floods also damaged his two lorries, two cars, nine freezers, two cold storage rooms, office equipment and workers’ living quarters.
During the sudden flood, Osman and his workers had little time to save their equipment; they prioritised their own safety instead.
“The water has only just started receding, so we are rushing to clean up as soon as possible, especially with Hari Raya approaching.
“This year’s celebration will be modest, as our focus is on restoring our operations,” he said.
Osman, who has been running the business since 1990, also urged authorities to take immediate action to prevent similar flooding in the future.
