KUALA LUMPUR: The flooding in several villages in Baling earlier this month was because a reservoir built on the Musang King durian plantation at Gunung Inas had burst.
This was confirmed by Environment and Water Minister Datuk Seri Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man, adding that the cause of the floods was determined following studies conducted by his ministry.
"The flooding affected several villages, including Kampung Iboi, Kampung Padang Lengkuas, Bukit Hangus and Kampung Pisang.
"If we look at the amount of rainfall, it was not more than 40mm. So, our initial studies show that the reservoir built on the plantation area had burst, causing the floods."
He was answering a supplementary question from R.S.N. Rayer (PH-Jelutong) in the Dewan Rakyat today on the recent floods in Kupang, Kedah.
In the July 4 incident, more than 800 houses in 12 villages were inundated. It was the worst flood ever recorded in Kupang, triggered by a water column that began upstream on Gunung Inas.
Strong currents swept away 16 houses, seriously damaged 18 homes and left more than 700 homes with minor damages.
A woman, her 14-year-old son and her pregnant daughter-in-law died after their house in Kampung Iboi was swept away during the floods.
Tuan Ibrahim said the government had approved six projects to prevent floods from recurring, including implementing a Flood Mitigation Plan in two phases with an allocation of RM175 million.
He said the government would also build two sabo dams costing RM20 million to reduce the risk of debris flow, apart from deepening the river and repairing the bridge with an allocation of RM6 million.