PRIME Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob today blamed the lack of preparation by the Selangor government and chaos among rescuers for the floods that wreaked havoc in the country’s most popular state last month.

He said that although the Malaysia Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia) had already issued warnings as early as November 1, these warnings went unheeded.

The prime minister also blamed the unexpected rainfall for the disaster that resulted in 55 deaths (40 men, 12 women and three children) in the country.

“I wish to stress that the Selangor floods were unexpected and weaknesses have been identified at the state and district levels, forcing me to intervene.

“Other states were also flooded, and some states (such as Pahang) were worse. But because they were prepared, the disaster could be managed well despite challenges,” Ismail told Parliament during a special sitting on the recent floods today.

The rainfall, Ismail said, was unexpected as Selangor experienced 380mm rainfall on December 18.

“This is the same as the monthly average in the state.

“For example, Taman Sri Muda residents, who are used to flash floods, did not expect water levels to rise so quickly,” the Bera MP said.

“As a result of the unexpected flood, there was chaos in the flood management on the first day in Selangor, causing rescuers unable to cope with the complexities of urban flooding.

“As such, there was no improvement in the flood management in Selangor on the second and third day (December 19 and 20) until it caused dissatisfaction among those affected due to delays in rescue operations and aid distribution.”

He said that work was made more difficult as many trapped and stranded vehicles on the main roads stopped rescue vehicles from entering housing estates.

“Rescuers also had trouble with the residents as some refused to move as they wanted to safeguard their property, and feared burglary and Covid-19 infection if they moved to the relief centres.

“As such, when the flood waters rose drastically many people were trapped and needed immediate help.”

Additionally, he said that rescuers were unfamiliar with the flood-hit areas and could not get to the locations of the victims.

“The relief assets from other states also had difficulty getting to Selangor as they were not familiar with the area. Even relief centres were flooded.

“The lack of electricity supply and telecommunication, which were cut off during the floods, also made it impossible for people to contact the rescuers.”

A total of 38,113 families involving 136,030 people were moved to the 1,112 flood relief centres and since then, the government has allocated RM1.4 billion to help flood victims, said Ismail. – January 20, 2022.