KUALA TERENGGANU: Early morning rain brought respite to the people here from the hot weather. There was a continuous light drizzle until afternoon and an expected heavy downpour later in the evening as dark clouds from the South China Sea move inland.
A check this morning revealed six districts namely Besut, Setiu, Hulu Terengganu, Kuala Terengganu, Kuala Nerus and Marang getting some rainfall with Besut and Setiu experiencing more than half an hour of rain.
Jackfruit orchard owner Abdul Rahman Abu Bakar, 65, of Kampung Pelong in Setiu, said the rain arrived late but it felt like a God-sent as the drought had affected everyone, especially farmers who had to source their water supply from nearby rivers to irrigate vegetable fields.
“The rain will induce trees to flower. A few more days of rain will be good for the fruiting trees, especially durians, jackfruit, duku and dokong. We are not expecting a bumper harvest this year but we will at least have some fruits available.
“The prolonged dry spell is starting to worry the farmers in the village. In fact, Setiu experienced 31 days without rain and is the second hottest district after Gerik in Perak which had been without rain for 56 days.
“Apart from disrupting the fruit season, the drought also led to wintering of rubber trees which caused the leaves to fall and produce less latex,” said the former village head of Kampung Pelong.
Despite the hot spell, the water level in Tasik Kenyir almost remained unchanged with the level recorded yesterday standing at 140.48 metres compared with the reading three weeks ago at 140.99 metres. The lake’s lowest level is 136 metres but it had not dropped to that level since it opened in 1986.
Meanwhile, Syarikat Air Terengganu (Satu) chief executive officer, Ir Atemin Sulong said household water consumption in the state had increase from 1,200 litres a day to 1,500 litres a day during the drought.
He said the said the situation was still under control throughout Terengganu although the increase in consumption had caused low water pressure in some areas.
“The increase in consumption was also attributed to farmers who needed to irrigate their fields and nurseries who must water their plants,” he added.