14 pupils, 5 teachers rescued after floods hit kindergarten in JB

 

Firemen with the teachers and pupils whom they evacuated from a kindergarten in Johor Bahru. (Johor Bomba pic)

JOHOR BAHRU: Fourteen children and five teachers from Tadika Umiku Sayang in Kampung Mohd Amin here were rescued by fire and rescue department men after the city was hit by flash floods this morning.

Department spokesman Nazarudin Yusof said seven firemen from the Larkin station and a fire engine were deployed to the location after the state operations centre received an emergency call at 9.30am.

“Upon arrival, the team rescued and evacuated the trapped victims to a safer place, which was a fast food restaurant located about 550 metres away,” he said.

Foodwaters had reached knee-high level by the time the rescue team reached the site.

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Johor Relief Organisation (Ihsan) CEO Farah Faridah Baptist said her team went to the scene with equipment and transport vehicles and transferred the teachers and pupils to the Larkin branch of the same kindergarten.

Meanwhile, the district disaster management committee said 10 areas in the district were reported to be affected by the flash floods, triggered by heavy rain that started at 6.30am, compounded by the high tide phenomenon.

Until noon today, the affected areas were Batu 10, Skudai; Kampung Dato Sulaiman Menteri; Tabika Kemas, Skudai Kiri; Kampung Mohd Amin; Kampung Ubi; Kampung Tiram Duku; Kampung Peladang; Kampung Baru Muafakat; Kampung Pekajang and Kampung Paya Mengkuang.

The floodwaters at several locations had receded a few hours later.

A temporary relief centre was opened at the Seri Bengkal Religious School in Batu Pahat from 8am to accommodate 29 victims from 11 families from Kampung Seri Bengkal.

In Kelantan, as many as 442 temporary evacuation centres (PPS) are ready to be activated in preparation for flooding throughout the northeast monsoon season this year.

Menteri besar Ahmad Yakob said that once activated, the PPS would be able to accommodate 170,180 victims at any one time.

Meanwhile, the Malaysian meteorological department (MetMalaysia) has warned of continuous rain in Sabah and Labuan until tomorrow.

MetMalaysia said the alert affects Sabah’s interior (Sipitang, Kuala Penyu and Beaufort), west coast (Papar, Putatan, Penampang, Kota Kinabalu, Tuaran and Kota Belud), and Kudat.

MetMalaysia said that Typhoon Noru, at a distance of 1,150km northeast of Sandakan, Sabah, as of 11am today, did not pose any significant threat to the country. - FMT