The floods displaced 122,000 people in Malaysia

KUALA LUMPUR – More than 122,000 people have been forced from their homes due to massive flooding caused by relentless rains swept the northern states of Malaysiadisaster officials said on Nov. 30.

The number surpassed the 118,000 displaced during some of the worst flooding since 2014, and disaster officials feared it could rise further as torrential rains continued.

The death toll remained at four recorded in Kelantan, Terengganu and Sarawak.

Kelantan bore the brunt of the flooding, accounting for 63 percent of the 122,631 people displaced, according to data from the National Disaster Management Agency.

There were nearly 35,000 people evacuated in Terengganu, with the rest of the displacement reported from seven other states.

Heavy rains, which started earlier this week, continued to lash Kelantan’s Pasir Puteh town, where people could be seen walking through streets flooded with waist-deep water.

“My area has been flooded since Wednesday. The water has already reached the corridor of my house and it is only two centimeters away from going inside,” Pasir Puteh resident and school caretaker Zamrah Majid, 59, told AFP.

“Fortunately, I moved my two cars to higher ground before the water level rose.”

She said she allowed her grandchildren to play in the water in front of his house because it was still shallow.

“But if the water rises, it would be dangerous, I’m afraid they could be swept away,” she added.

“I haven’t received any assistance yet, whether it’s welfare or other types of assistance.”

Mr Muhammad Zulkarnain, 27, who lives with his parents in Pasir Puteh, said they are isolated.

“There is no way in or out for any vehicle to enter my neighborhood,” he told AFP.