Floods: Residents want Sungai Tebrau deepened quickly

JOHOR BAHRU, Jan 4 -- Residents in three villages in Mukim Kangkar Tebrau here, who were severely affected by the floods two days ago, urge the government to expedite a project to widen and deepen Sungai Tebrau, in the area, to ensure that the incident does not recur in the future.

Mukim Kangkar Tebrau chief Jawahir Ali said plans to deepen and widen the river was discussed by the authorities in 2019 but could not be implemented due to the high cost involved.

He said the last time the river was deepened was about eight years ago which only involved excavating sand from the bottom of the river.

"So if the work to deepen and widen this river is done, we are confident that the flood problem can be overcome.

"This is because, currently, when the rain falls relentlessly and collides with the high tide, the river water quickly overflows to engulf village roads and houses," he told reporters here today.

Jawahir said there were more than 20,000 residents in Mukim Kangkar Tebrau but the three villages which were often affected by floods due to the overflow of the river were Kampung Paya Kenangan, Kampung Pasir Tebrau and Kampung Kangkar Tebrau.

He said 296 victims from 76 families from this area had been evacuated as river water entered their homes and it was time for the project to be expedited.

He said that maintenance work should also be implemented as there were cracks along the river banks and roads used by residents.

Meanwhile, a businessman who had a goat farm in Kangkar Tebrau area, Osman Cheya Kutty hoped that the project would cover the entire length of Sungai Tebrau, from the headwaters in Kulai to the estuary in Johor Bahru (Tebrau).

"If it is only concentrated in this area (Kangkar Tebrau), this flood problem will not be completely resolved because the water source starts from the headwaters," he said.

Echoeing Osman, Kampung Paya Kenangan resident, Afiq Suhaimi, 25, also hoped that the government could consider building a concrete wall barrier on the river banks to prevent the river from overflowing.

"The proposal to widen and deepen the river is good but it is better if the barrier wall is built first as a short-term measure to prevent the same incident from happening.

"We (residents) here are fed up with the flood disaster every time it rains heavily," he said when met while cleaning the furniture in his house which was flooded two days ago.

Meanwhile, Tebrau Member of Parliament Steven Choong and Puteri Wangsa State Assemblyman  Mazlan Bujang who were contacted confirmed that they were aware of the project planned to widen and deepen the river but did not have detailed information about it.

"I understand that the main problem to implement this project now is because of the cost. But more information about it has not been obtained as the proposal is still in the early stages," said Mazlan.

-- BERNAMA