Critical water level at Bukit Merah dam

The Perak Irrigation and Drainage Department is still implementing scheduled water rationing after the water level at the Bukit Merah Dam dropped to a critical level yesterday.

Its director Ahmad Shahrir Md Naziri, however, gave assurance that the domestic water supply for residents in Kerian will not be disrupted.

“So far, we are still implementing water rationing, but the domestic supply for residents in Kerian is running as usual,” he told Bernama today.

Yesterday, the Kerian District Irrigation and Drainage Department Office issued a statement on its social media platform, informing that the water level at the Bukit Merah Dam had reached Stage 2 critical level of 6.706m and that it was hoping for rainfall in the catchment area to replenish the dam's water level.

Meanwhile, in a statement today, the Perak Irrigation and Drainage Department said there has been rainfall in the catchment area over the past 24 hours, contributing to the increase in the dam's water level.

As of this morning, it said the water level at Bukit Merah Dam has risen to 6.965m with a storage capacity of 18.70 million cubic metres, bringing it to Stage 1 critical level.

“This means that despite the water rationing, the domestic supply of water has not been disrupted,” the statement read.

Nevertheless, it said the department had also filed an application to the state government to carry out cloud seeding operations through the Kerian District Disaster Management Secretariat in a letter dated June 1.

- Bernama