KUALA LUMPUR:The number of flood victims in Sabah is still rising while the situation in Pahang and Sarawak is improving with a drop in the number of evacuees in relief centres this evening.

In SABAH, the state Disaster Management Committee announced that there are currently 716 evacuees compared to 673 this morning at 17 relief centres across the state.

The total included evacuees from two new flood-hit districts, Tenom, with 25 evacuees and Papar (19), while the other seven districts still affected by floods are Kota Belud with 21 evacuees, Tuaran (115), Kota Kinabalu (101), Paitan (69), Beaufort (78), Penampang (76) and Putatan (23).

In SARAWAK, only the relief centre at Sekolah Kebangsaan Tanah Puteh in Serian district remained in operation, housing 325 victims.

The State Disaster Management Committee report announced the closure of four centres in the district, namely Dewan Kampung Rimba Padi, Dewan Kampung Slabi Entukuh, Dewan Balek Bun Janjun and Dewan Masyarakat Serian today.

In PAHANG, only 1,211 evacuees remain in 16 centres in Pekan, Maran and Kuantan districts.

The Social Welfare Department Disaster Info website reported the number of evacuees in Pekan, that numbered in the thousands previously, had dropped to 809 individuals this evening, followed by 380 in Kuantan and 22 in Maran.

The infobanjir.water.gov.my website meanwhile reported that the water level of Sungai Jelai in Lipis remained above the danger level while the water level of Sungai Pahang in Serambi, Pekan was at warning level.

-- BERNAMA