Abdul Wahab (centre) speaks at the press conference.
KOTA SAMARAHAN: Floods have affected 852 victims in Sarawak so far this year.
Malaysian Civil Defence Force (APM) Disaster Management and Operational Division director Abdul Wahab Rahim said 10 evacuation centres had been set up in Kuching, Samarahan, Betong, Sibu, and Bintulu to accommodate the flood victims.
He said the latest case involved 82 households with 340 individuals in Long Busang on the eve of Hari Raya Aidilfitri.
“The flood situation in Long Busang is a case where it takes at least eight hours to reach the site from the Kapit town, given its remote location. However, thanks to Sarawak Radio Amateur Services (Sares) and information provided through the Internet service at SK Long Busang, our secretariat was able to learn about the flood situation,” he said in a statement issued during a press conference yesterday.
Last year, 2,438 households comprising 8,253 individuals were affected by floods.
Samarahan recorded the highest number of flood victims at 2,307 followed by Serian (1,861), Bintulu (1,534), and Sibu (1,376).
Other affected divisions were Kuching, Limbang, Mukah, Sri Aman, and Sarikei.
In 2017, only Limbang, Samarahan, Bintulu, and Miri were affected by floods, involving 364 victims.
The number of flood victims in 2016 was the highest in recent years at 13,394 in the three southern divisions of Kuching, Serian, and Samarahan.
Abdul Wahab said 10,887 flood victims were registered in 11 divisions across Sarawak in 2015.
He added Kuching recorded the highest number of flood victims that year at 4,186 followed by Samarahan (2,063), Limbang (1,707), Serian (1,004), Bintulu (727), and Betong (697).