Kg Iboi Bailey bridge shut to traffic after heavy rain

 

A view of the floods in Kampung Iboi, Baling, following heavy rain. - Pic courtesy of Kg Iboi villagers

ALOR STAR: Villagers of Kampung Iboi, Baling, ground zero of the devastating July 4 floods, had another scare today when Sungai Kupang burst its banks following heavy rainfall this evening.

Strong currents also led to a Bailey bridge, built as a temporary connection between Kampung Iboi and Kampung Masjid Iboi, being closed to all vehicles.

Several areas in Baling were inundated with floodwaters due to the downpour. - Pic courtesy Civil Defence Force

Mohamad Nor Che Husain, who is the Kampung Iboi Village Development and Security Committee secretary, said heavy rain started about 6pm and lasted an hour.

"The strong currents swept away the sand riverbank along Sungai Kupang.

"The villagers have been on high alert as it is still raining heavily uphill on Gunung Inas," he said when contacted.

- Pic courtesy Civil Defence Force

On July 4, columns of water washed down logs, debris and thick mud, which ravaged 40 villages in the Kupang subdistrict and three other villages in the Baling district.

More than 1,000 homes and business premises were damaged, with at least 17 houses swept away.

In that incident, three people in a family, including a pregnant woman, were killed when their home in Kampung Iboi, was swept away. - NST