By South China Morning Post | Created at 2024-12-03 03:54:44 | Updated at 2024-12-04 09:07:36
1 day ago
Residents in the Malaysian town of Tumpat were returning to submerged homes and shops as deadly floodwaters eased in some areas following the worst floods in decades over the weekend, and more heavy rain was forecast as soon as Tuesday.
Peninsular Malaysia, particularly its northeastern coast, and southern Thailand have been battered by torrential rains which fuelled floods that killed dozens of people, and damaged homes, transport links, and thousands of acres of rice crops.
In Tumpat, a coastal town in Kelantan state near the Thai border, people were able to return to their homes on Monday only to find many had collapsed, with parts of walls, roofs and broken furniture lying scattered in pools of water.
Muhamad Alim, a 56-year-old shopkeeper whose food store was inundated, recalled fast-rising waters in his home and his grandchildren crying as the flood surged on Saturday night.
“Electricity was cut off, and there was no water supply. So, we were stuck, sitting there as if we were in the middle of the sea, surrounded by water,” he said.
