November 09, 2009 20:03 PM

Slight Drop In Flood Evacuees In Kelantan, Schools Closed

KOTA BAHARU, Nov 9 (Bernama) -- The number of flood evacuees dropped slightly from 4,151 this morning to 4,133 in the evening but there are signs of improvement.

State flood control operations chief Wan Mustapha Wan Abdul Hamid said there were now 2,907 evacuees in Rantau Panjang, Pasir Mas, compared with 2,955 earlier, while in Tumpat the number had dropped from 1,226 to 1,196 victims.

He told Bernama that the water level at Sungai Golok, Rantau Panjang, as at noon was 9.81m, which was 0.81m above the danger level (9m).

In Rantau Panjang, the popular Duty-Free Zone was under 1m of water, forcing most businesses to close.

In Tumpat several villages including Kampung Beruk, Kampung Jambu and Kampung Bendang Pak Yong remained cut off from contact.

Meanwhile, 18 schools in Kelantan were closed due to the floods which had hit the state since last week.

State Education director Ghazali Abdul Rahman said the schools were either flooded or turned into relief centres for flood victims.

"Most of the closed schools are located in Pasir Mas, Rantau Panjang, Pengkalan Kubor and Tumpat areas," he said when contacted by Bernama.

Two of the affected schools were secondary schools -- Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Meranti and Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Rantau Panjang -- with the latter being badly affected, with water levels rising to two metres.

Thirteen 13 Kemas nurseries in Rantau Panjang had also been closed since Saturday.

Rantau Panjang Kemas senior supervisor Mukhtar Mustafa said the closures affected 450 pupils.

In KUALA TERENGGANU, Sungai Setiu remained at a dangerous level this evening, while other main rivers are at below alert levels.

A spokesperson of state Drainage and Irrigation Department said that as at 2pm, the water level of Sungai Setiu in Kampung bukit was at 12.32m (danger level 12m).

However, he added, the water level of Sungai Setiu was subsiding slowly.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson of the Terengganu National Security Council said all roads in the state were accessible.

-- BERNAMA

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