Just when the perennial floods caused by the monsoon rain seemed to be petering out, the heavy downpour that lashed Miri on Friday brought about widespread flooding in the city.
The coincidence of high tide and heavy rain in the late afternoon was blamed for the flood which caught many by surprise.
However, blaming the weather and tide for the inundation would be barking up the wrong tree and sweeping the cause of frequent flash floods plaguing the city under the carpet.
Miri Zone Fire and Rescue chief Superintendent Lau Poh Kiong hit the nail on the head when he said after Friday’s flood that poor drainage system was the cause of flooding in the city.
Even when the rain was not as heavy as Friday’s downpour and did not coincide with high tide, many parts of the city would still be inundated.
When the flood was not severe, the authorities seemed to have found a new word to downplay the situation – ponding.
Apparently ponding is a euphemism for flash flood to put across the message that the inundation was not that serious and that it was a natural occurrence.
Ironically instead of downplaying the frequent flooding, ponding is a damming indictment of the city’s poor sewage system.
The growth of Miri city has been astounding in the past few years as testified by the number of residential and commercial buildings sprouting up.
However, as shown by the frequent flash floods hitting the city the drainage system has not keep pace with the development.
With more areas tar-sealed or concreted, the run-off of rainwater inevitably became faster and the old drains that were built to cater for lower volume of water could not channel the water out fast enough.
There is an urgent need for the city planners to look into the present drainage system and find ways to improve it.
Failure to do so would mean more misery for the people of Miri and with the weather becoming more severe these days, there is a possibility that the city would be hit by a major flood in the future.
The lesson learnt from the Miri floods should be noted by town planners in other parts of Sarawak.
The state is going through rapid development with many towns expanding by leaps and bounds.
The local councils of these towns should ensure that their drainage systems are improved to cope with the faster run-off of rainwater, or risk facing frequent flash floods.
Meanwhile, amidst the gloom and misery of floods in the state there is a bright spot – the Rajang River Basin.
Towns, villages and settlements along the longest river in the state have suffered some of the severest floods throughout the years.
However, since the Bakun Dam was built, such massive floods have become a thing of the past.
During this rainy season Sibu, Kapit, Song and Kanowit have been spared from devastating floods caused by water from the upper reaches of the Rajang cascading downstream.
There was flood in Sibu but the cause was the same as that in Miri – poor drainage.
The dam has its share of critics who railed against its construction but who are now conspicuously silent about the positive change it brought about.
Credit must be given where it is deserved – critics of the Bakun dam should swallow some humble pie and acknowledge the benefit the Bakun Dam brings as
much as they cry out against it.