PENANG recorded its highest rainfall in history at 270mm, causing flash floods that swept parts of the island and mainland this morning, said the state government.

The more than four hours of heavy rain since last night were part of the inter-monsoon phenomenon that is expected to hit other northern states in the peninsula.

State flood mitigation exco Chow Kon Yeow said state Drainage and Irrigation Department (DID) rainfall stations recorded high rainfall in just four hours – 198mm at the Sungai Pinang station (northeast district) and 175mm at the Teluk Bahang Dam station (southwest district).

The state’s highest rainfall reading of 270mm was recorded at the Air Itam station, said Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng, who was also at the press conference.

Lim is chairman of the Penang Water Supply Corporation.

The heavy rainfall filled up the two dams on the island. With rainfall of 180mm, the Teluk Bahang dam is now 85.3% full, while the Air Itam dam is 91% full.

From 4am to 10.35am, the Sungai Pinang and Sungai Air Itam stations recorded rainfall readings of 120.5mm and 129.5mm, respectively.

Both Sungai Pinang and Sungai Air Itam are main rivers on the island. Their water levels hit the danger level today with readings of 3.2m and 7.57m, contributing to the floods.

Chow said stations in other districts on mainland Penang recorded between 60mm and 120mm of rainfall.

“The rainfall we had today, over four hours, was an average of 100mm. This exceeds the 60mm per hour that is categorised as very heavy rain.

“Until now, Penang has recorded 80% of its average yearly rainfall reading of 2,500mm. The remainder is expected between this month and December,” he told a press conference today.

High tide and blocked waterways

Chow said the high tide of between 1.8m and 2.1m since 5am also contributed to the flash floods.

“Some rivers and drainage systems in residential areas and villages are unable handle the heavy rainfall.

“There are also utility facilities built across the rivers and main drains that obstruct the water flow.

“We are also still dealing with domestic, industrial and farming waste discarded into the rivers and monsoon drains. This prevents the drainage system from functioning properly, especially at pump houses.”

So far, 40 people from 19 families in Teluk Kumbar have been evacuated. One man from Mak Mandin in Butterworth was also evacuated.

Locations hit in the southwest district include Kg Naran, Kg Sulup, Kg Nelayan, Bayan Baru, Sungai Pinang, Teluk Bahang, Sungai Rusa, and Pondok Upeh.

In the northeast district, the areas affected include Kg Masjid, Kg Makam, Jalan P. Ramlee, Jalan Masjid Negeri, Astaka Stadium, Jalan Tun Sardon, Farlim, Jalan Macallum, Taman Free School and Kg Mutiara in Batu Ferringhi.

On the mainland, all three districts were hit by flash floods. The affected areas in the northern Seberang Prai district include Butterworth, as well as the Mak Mandin industrial area. Some 50 homes were affected.

In the central Seberang Prai district, several villages and residential areas in Seberang Jaya, Prai, Bukit Mertajam and Permatang Pauh were hit.

Kg Nenas Sungai Kechil, Kg Sethu, Kg Titi Hitam and Kg Pengkalan in southern Seberang Prai were also flooded.

Chow said the state, via DID and local councils, would proceed with flood-mitigation projects at flood hotspots with an allocation of RM300 million beginning in the fourth quarter of the year.

Penang has high-impact flood-mitigation projects to tackle floods in 47 locations.

The projects are expected to be completed in two to three years’ time, while the authorities work on flood prevention and maintenance work on existing drainage systems.

On the Sungai Pinang flood-mitigation project, Lim said the federal government had given RM150 million for its implementation, while the state had forked out another RM150 million. – September 15, 2017.