Every house will be checked during evacuation exercise - JBPM

JBPM Fire Safety Division director Datuk Ahmad Izram Osman said this order had been issued to rescue personnel in view of the severity of the floods, especially in Pasir Puteh and Rantau Panjang in Kelantan.

"I want every house in flooded areas to be inspected, especially in these two places.

"We have to visit every house and encourage the occupants to be evacuated immediately if necessary," he told reporters after attending a briefing on flood relief operations by Kelantan JBPM director Zainal Madasin here today.

A total of 1,294 firemen have been deployed to manage the floods in Kelantan.

Ahmad Izram said apart from getting input to plan for improving relief operations, his visit was also aimed at giving moral support to the personnel involved.

He said firemen had been fully stretched since the monsoon floods struck on Dec 14 but they had to keep up their spirits for the sake of evacuating victims.

He welcomed the help extended by non-governmental organisations (NGOs) from outside Kelantan, saying they had provided manpower and 30 lorries for flood relief operations.

"We need to be smart in pooling the resources of agencies and NGO which are willing to help in evacuation work in less dangerous places. This will allow our personnel to focus on rescuing and evacuating victims from high-risk areas like Pasir Puteh and Rantau Panjang," he added.

Ahmad Izram said Kelantan JBPM was responsible for evacuating 4,251 of the 18,632 victims recorded as at 2 pm today.