A NOTICE about higher rainfall over Selangor for the months of November and December as well as instructions to the relevant state agencies to prepare for floods was issued a month ago on November 17.

The notice by the Selangor State Secretariat (Pejabat Setiausaha Kerajaan Negeri Selangor) is dated on the said date and is still available on its Facebook page.

It warned that average rainfall for November 2021 would be 250-370mm, and 200-300mm for December, citing information from the Selangor Meteorological Department.

“This will bring the risk of flooding and flash floods in nine districts in Selangor.

“The Selangor government has instructed the chairmen of district disaster management committees, security forces and local authorities to plan a course of action – early preparations to face floods, flash floods, landslides, storms, and other scenarios for the duration of the northeast monsoon season,” the statement said.

The November 17 notice was highlighted on Twitter today by a social media user who said: “The warning was issued a month ago so preparations could be made but you guys don’t know how to prioritise…”

The notice also has several pages appended of the state’s nine districts – Gombak, Petaling, Klang, Sepang, Hulu Langat, Kuala Selangor, Kuala Langat, Hulu Selangor and Sabak Bernama and the areas within that are at risk of flooding.

Under Klang, Taman Sri Muda is listed. It is one of the worst-affected areas where residents have been stranded on rooftops or on the upper-floor of their homes posting for help on social media since Saturday, after water levels rose swiftly and official help from the authorities were nowhere in sight.

Based on social media reports and public accounts, the first round of rescue operations and food deliveries were conducted by volunteers who used their own kayaks and small boats in response to pleas on social media.

Government agencies and the military have begun moving in last night and rescue operations are ongoing as of this morning.

Many other parts of Klang which are badly affected by the weekend’s floods are also mentioned in the state government’s notice.

Yesterday, Environment and Water Ministry secretary-general Ir Dr Zaini Ujang said the amount of rain in the Klang Valley since late Friday over 24 hours had equalled the average rainfall for a month.

“The annual rainfall in Kuala Lumpur is 2,400mm and this means yesterday’s rainfall exceeded the average rainfall for a month. It is something beyond expectation and only occurs once every 100 years,” he said.

He also gave rainfall figures, with Sentul station recording the highest at 363mm, Gombak (247mm), Jinjang (258mm) and Sg Bonus Jalan Tun Razak (273mm).

Zaini said the unusual amount of rainfall was due to monsoon flow factors and a low pressure weather system that caused a tropical depression over the South China Sea.

This was detected by the Meteorological Department on December 12.

On December 16, the system entered Pahang and moved across the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia, causing a rise in humidity and continuous heavy rain in almost every state in the peninsula.

Flooding has also occurred in Pahang, Malacca, Negri Sembilan, Terengganu, Kelantan and Perak. – December 20, 2021.