FLASH FLOODS HIT PENANG

PENANG (Malaysia), Oct 16 (Bernama) -- Flash floods hit several villages and areas here when Sungai Pinang overflowed its banks after a heavy downpour, early Thursday.

Four families have been evacuated after hundreds of houses were under one
metre of water.

Among the places badly affected were Jalan P. Ramlee and part of Jalan
Perak but the road turned muddy after floodwaters subsided.

Penang Municipal Council workers cleared mud from the road this morning
while residents had a busy day cleaning up their houses.

Datuk Keramat assemblyman Jagdeep Singh Deo said the floods were getting
worse whenever Sungai Pinang overflowed its banks and action must be taken to
solve the problem

He called on the state government to speed up the implementation of the
second phase of the Sungai Pinang's flood mitigation project.

A resident, Siti Aminah Razak, 42, said she had to move some belongings to
the first floor of her double-storey house as floodwaters rose to about one
metre on the ground floor.

"The floods began to inundate my house at 2am after two hours of heavy
rain. The floods subsided at about 6am," she said, adding that it was the fourth
time floods hit the area since September.

Another resident, Abdul Jalil Othman, 36, said residents were worried of
floods as the area was vulnerable during the rainy season.

"Luckily, we can still move some belongings upstairs," he Abdul Jalil, a
father of four.

Penang is a state, located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia
by the Strait of Malacca.