ALOR STAR: The number of floods evacuees in Kedah jumped from 100 to 415 people as of 10pm Friday, with Bandar Baharu in Kulim being the latest area hit following continuous rainfall since Thursday evening.
In the Kuala Muda district, 214 people from 47 families have been evacuated to flood relief centres. They were forced to seek temporary shelter at the Kampung Tengah public hall and surau after their homes were inundated by waist-level floodwaters.
Langkawi was another badly-affected area, with 117 people from 18 families now being temporarily housed at the SMK Kedawang and Kampung Raja public halls.
A powerful southwest wind pressure triggered the storm which wreaked havoc in Langkawi, damaging at least 10 vehicles after they were hit by uprooted trees along Jalan Pantai Kok.
The roofs of several houses in the area were also blown off.
The storm also forced the authorities to order the island’s tour operators to temporarily cease all seaside activities as a precautionary measure.
Kedah Natural Disaster Management Secretariat coordinator Captain (Civil Defence Force) Saifuddin Abdullah said as at 10pm, 84 people from 25 families in Bandar Baharu, Kulim are seeking shelter at the relief centres in SK Bandar Baharu and Dewan Kampung Majidee.
It was reported that the continuous heavy rainfall also led to a landslide at Taman Permai Utama in Gurun but there was no report of injury.
Kedah Fire and Rescue Department public relations officer Mohamad Mustakim Mukhtar said eight families in Taman Permai Utama had been ordered to evacuate their homes following the landslide incident.
He said the order was issued after firefighters from the Guar Cempedak station, who rushed to the scene upon receiving a distress call about 3pm, inspected the area.
"Upon inspection, it was confirmed that there was a landslide involving a 30m slope behind the terrace houses.
"The eight families were ordered to evacuate their houses for safety reasons," he said.
It was learnt that the heavy rain, which lasted several hours, also triggered flash floods in Sungai Petani and Yan, affecting nearly 500 people.