Rescue workers are seen in Taman Sri Muda, Shah Alam December 19, 2021. — Picture via Twitter/@leemrkjen_
KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 19 — Kith and kin of Taman Sri Muda residents have taken to social media platforms with pleas to find their loved ones, after losing contact with them due to the devastating flood which has displaced over 14,000 people in Selangor.
Malay Mail‘s checks found many searching for their elderly parents, some with medical conditions, as well as siblings and friends.
Taman Sri Muda is one of the worst-hit areas in Shah Alam and floodwater remains high in the area, with no signs of receding anytime soon.
The housing area was cut off from all motor vehicles following the flood, with boats being the sole way in and out.
“My friend was stuck at Taman Sri Muda, second floor of her house with her siblings!”
“Can someone please let us know, if any help was provided? We are not able to reach out to them anymore!
“Please help us share! We need some sort of an update,” Facebook user Mangai Krishna Kumar posted.
Mangai told Malay Mail that her friend, Vithiya Elangovan, 29, has not been contactable since. The last communication the duo had was at 1pm, when Vithiya was still stranded on the roof of her house.
A schoolteacher also reached out to Malay Mail, in search of her student only known as Pyritib, whom she has not been able to reach.
“His father is a disabled person. As of 5.30pm today, they were still in their house, on the second floor of their double storey home.
“I can’t reach him already. It has been two nights since they were stuck. There is only one tick on my WhatsApp messages to him,” the teacher who requested anonymity said.
Social activist and independent filmmaker Mahi Ramakrishnan has also been helping families track their kin.
“No: 39 Jalan Mahir Dua, 25/44B, Taman Sri Muda Shah Alam. Could anyone who is nearby please go to this home as there are two elderly people stuck there? We haven’t heard from them and believe their phone is out of battery. One of them is a cancer survivor.
“I know boat rescue is available near the KFC area but these people won’t know that. So please do check on them and get back to me or Vinodhini Naidu,” Mahi posted.
“No: 2 Jalan 25/50A Taman Sri Muda, Shah Alam. Yeap Soon Hai, 80, is trapped in his home. His family is in Singapore. Can someone please alert the rescue team?” Mahi wrote in a separate post.
The relatives of 70-year-old Shirley Lee whose last known address was 25, Jalan Selamat 25/93 Taman Sri Muda have also put out a search plea.
“She lives alone and we are worried. Her phone is not contactable as the battery has died. We can be reached at: 0176275694. We are praying for updates on her, since we can’t enter the area owing to the floodwater,” Lee’s daughter Beatrice Tan told Malay Mail.
Siri Andrea Xavier is also unable to reach her relatives and has been seeking for help to hear from them.
“Urgent help needed. Family stranded with a stroke patient at No. 44, Jalan Luhur 25/31, Taman Sri Muda.
“Another five are stranded at the Power Zone Gym, level 2, at No. 47, Jalan Teraju 25/67, Taman Sri Muda,” Siri told Malay Mail, adding that they last had contact at 4pm and have not been reachable since.
National news agency Bernama quoted Selangor Fire and Rescue Department director Norazam Khamis as saying tonight that floodwaters in Taman Sri Muda had yet to recede, with most routes in and out of the area, as well as houses still inundated.
“Floodwaters in most areas have started to recede but there are areas near the river where the water seems to be stagnant such as in Taman Sri Muda, here,” he said.
Torrential rain caused flooding, displaced over 32,000 people and closed roads in Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang, Melaka, Negri Sembilan, Selangor, Perak and Kuala Lumpur since Friday.
The Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia) only just lifted the continuous rain warning issued for the eight states tonight.
Its director-general Muhammad Helmi Abdullah told Bernama that weather conditions in the affected states were expected to improve.