KOTA KINABALU, Jan 24 — The number of flood victims in Beaufort, 97km from here, has risen to 478 from 10 yesterday.
Beaufort District Officer Mohd Sahid Othman told Bernama 208 people were being accommodated at the Kampung Suasa community hall and the 270 others at the Pa Musa community hall.
“At 6.23pm today, there were 478 evacuees at the two relief centres. Their number is expected to rise tonight if the rain continues to pour,” he said.
Mohd Sahid, who is chairman of the district disaster relief committee, said the level of the Padas River at 6.23pm was 9.04 metres, above the danger point of 8.70 metres.
He advised the people in the district to quickly contact the Beaufort disaster operations centre at 087-211146 in the event of floods in their areas.
Mohd Sahid said the rescue teams were also using boats as many roads to the villages were submerged in floodwaters.
The stretch of Jalan Nabawan-Sepulut at Km14.5, some 198 kilometres from here, was flooded to a depth of one metre and passable only to heavy vehicles.
Public Works Department Nabawan district engineer Mohd Hardy Laidin said the stretch of road was flooded after the Pendawan River burst its banks.
He advised road users in light vehicles travelling from Kota Kinabalu or Keningau to Tawau and vice versa to avoid that stretch of road for the time being. — Bernama
