Abnormal rainfall distribution in Gunung Jerai causes floods - KASA

PUTRAJAYA: The Ministry of Environment and Water (KASA) said the distribution of abnormally heavy rain in a short period of time around the peak area of Gunung Jerai, Yan, Kedah had caused the flash floods that hit settlements in Kuala Muda and Yan yesterday afternoon.

KASA secretary-general Datuk Seri Ir Dr Zaini Ujang said the weather survey report issued by the Meteorological Department found that there was unusually heavy rainfall in the area starting at about 2.30 pm.

"This extreme rainfall has caused the water surge phenomena in the Gunung Jerai area and mud floods with a depth of between 0.1 meters and 0.3 meters in Kuala Muda and 0.2 meters and 1.5 meters in Yan," he said in a media statement here today.

The media yesterday reported that several villages and residential areas around Gunung Jerai were hit by floods believed to be caused by water surges from the waterfall areas at the foot of the mountain. The incident also caused water to swiftly overflow and inundate residential areas, causing damage to roads and houses.

The Kedah government has declared Yan and Kuala Muda districts as Level 1 Disaster areas based on the National Security Council (MKN) Directive No. 20.

MKN Directive No.20 refers to a more comprehensive policy and mechanism on disaster management covering the stages before, during and after a disaster.

Disaster incidents in areas categorised as Level 1 are handled by agencies involved in disaster management at the district level, without or with limited assistance from outside.

Based on information from the Department of Irrigation and Drainage, the rainfall stations in Gunung Jerai and Kampung Singkir Genting recorded cumulative readings of 281 millimetres (mm) and 172 mm of rainfall respectively, he said.

"Within an hour, the highest cumulative amount of rainfall recorded was 91 mm," he said, adding that records showed at 6 pm, the rainfall had exceeded the 50-year Average Recurrence Interval (ARI).

ARI refers to the number of years predicted to elapse before the recurrence of a certain magnitude of rainfall. The higher the ARI value, the higher the rainfall intensity.

-- BERNAMA