Burst reservoir believed to have triggered flood in Baling
ALOR SETAR - A few reservoirs storing tap water for the community had burst and believed to have triggered the flood in Baling on Monday.
Kedah Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor said observation by villagers at the reservoir in Gunung Inas which supplies water to Kampung Carok Kapas and Kampung Carok Rotan Mas showed that it broke in the tragedy.
He said this had happened because the reservoir could no longer hold the huge amount of water which were fast flowing.
Sanusi did not rule out the possibility that there were resevoirs in other villages experiencing a similar situation.
"Burst resevoirs will contribute to water surge which will eventually spill over to the foot of the mountain," he said.
During a press conference on Tuesday, Sanusi said the project to plant musang king durians in Gunung Inas could not be considered as the main cause of the flood and water surge in Kampung Iboi, Kupang.
He said the incident was similar to the tragedy that happened in Yan, last year.
Photos taken by the Fire and Rescue Department from a helicopter initially showed that a resevoir built by the villagers and durian farmers was not broken, but was filled with sand, he added.
He said there was a possibility that the water flow that formed the water surge had accumulated along Gunung Inas before simultaneously flowing downwards.
Previously, the residents of Kampung Iboi claimed that the incident was related with the durian planting project that involved about 1,200 hectors of land managed in Gunung Inas since 2018.
Over 17 villages were affected by the flood due to the water surge in Gunung Inas following a three-hour downpour on Monday.
