Friday April 12, 2013

Flash flood havoc puts DBKL in overdrive as Met Dept forecasts more rain

By BAVANI M
bavanim@thestar.com.my

Mud attack: A DBKL clean-up crew bulldozing out mud and sediment from a tunnel in Jalan Sultan Salahuddin, near Bank Negara.
 

KLANG VALLEY folk have been asked to brace themselves for more thunderstorms in the evenings from now until early May.

The Malaysian Meteorological Depart­ment’s forecast showed that rain is expected almost every day from now onwards as it is a normal occurrence during the inter-monsoon season.
During this period, there will be plenty of rain, especially in the afternoon and evening and it is expected to hit parts of the Klang Valley, the department said in a statement to StarMetro.

The statement added that the thunderstorms would be accompanied by strong winds.
On Wednesday evening, a thunderstorm wreaked havoc and caused flash floods and traffic chaos in many parts of Kuala Lumpur.

Motorists were forced to abandon their vehicles and wade through waist-deep water in many main roads in Kuala Lumpur.

Areas that were hard hit were Jalan Tun Razak, Jalan Parlimen, Jalan Duta, Jalan Pudu, Jalan Cheras Lama, Jalan Chan Sow Lin, Jalan Segambut and Bukit Bintang.
Pavilion KL and Sungei Wang Plaza basement carpark area were also badly flooded resulting in many motorists being stranded.

Over in Jalan Kolam Air, a half-completed flood mitigation project which was supposed to be ready last year, had caused massive damage to some 100 houses in the area.
Flood water rose up to three feet, flooding the porch and hallways of homes.

Rising tide: A family stranded in Jalan Tun Razak when flood water rose and submerged their car.

 

“It was terrible, many people had to take leave yesterday just to clean up their houses,” said a frustrated Ravichandran Pakiam Pillay who lives nearby.
Ravichandran also wanted to know what had happened to the RM6mil flood mitigation project, which was supposed to put an end to the flood woes in the township.
“From what I have heard, the pumphouse is not complete.

“The Drainage and Irrigation Department (DID) completed a retaining wall for flood mitigation, but from what happened on Wednesday, obviously it is not working,” said Ravichandran.
When contacted, Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) Public Works and Drainage Depart­ment director Tan Keng Chok said rainfall was unusually heavy on Wednesday, causing flash floods to hit core city areas.

According to Tan, the rainfall was usually recorded at 60mm, which, according to him, is already considered high, but the readings spiked unusually two days ago.
“We recorded some 140mm of rainfall in Jalan Ipoh and at the Batu retention pond, while the rainfall was 118mm in Sungai Bunos,” Tan said.

Deep water: Vehicles having a tough time passing through flooded Jalan Dang Wangi, Kuala Lumpur.

 

He added that the recorded amount was considered very high and above the danger limit for heavy rain.
City Hall Landscape and Recreation Department director Mustafa Mohd Nor said that he and his team were out from 11pm to remove a huge tree that had fallen in front of a condominium in Jalan Ceylon in the city.

“The tree was blocking the entrance and it took 30 of my officers to remove it,” Mustafa said.
Mustafa added that City Hall’s hotline received a total of 37 complaints on uprooted trees from different parts of the city.

Meanwhile SMART, commenting on Wednesday’s flood which took the city by storm, said it was on stand-by to prevent any flooding in the city.

Chief operating officer Mohd Fuad Kamal Ariffin said the team has been doubled and are on alert 24 hours a day.

“The patrol team and operation room staff have been on high-alert since last September to monitor the situation to prevent flooding within its coverage areas in Kuala Lumpur,” said Mohd Fuad.

“Though the recent flooding in Kuala Lumpur was not within our coverage zone, we did use the SMART system to divert excess flood water upstream via the Berembang pond,” he added.

Thestar Friday 12, 2013

CYCS
12 April,2013.