AMN/ WEB DESK
Over 22,000 people were evacuated throughout Malaysia as it faces some of the worst flooding in years. Heavy downpours since Friday have caused rivers to overflow, submerging many urban areas and cutting off major roads, stranding thousands of motorists.
An official government website said, almost 22,000 flood victims were evacuated in eight states and territories with over 10,000 of them in the central state of Pahang. More than 5,000 people fled their homes in the country’s richest state of Selangor which surrounds the capital Kuala Lumpur.
In press meet late last night, Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said the situation in Selangor has taken them by suprise because during the monsoon season, floods rarely occurr in the State.
The Meteorological Department in Malaysia warned that the downpour is expected to continue in parts of Pahang. The tropical Southeast Asian nation often sees stormy monsoon seasons at the end of the year, with seasonal flooding regularly causing mass evacuations.