Seven dead, more than 50,000 evacuated in Malaysia floods

Rescuers evacuate people from flooded areas in Hulu Langat, Selangor, Malaysia on December 19. (Photo: XINHUA/VNA)

Kuala Lumpur (VNA) – At least seven people have died and more than 50,000 evacuated from their homes as Malaysia faced some of its worst floods for years, officials said on December 20.

A weekend of torrential rain caused rivers to overflow, flooding towns and villages and cutting off major roads, with many motorists left trapped in their vehicles for hours.

According to official data, the number of people displaced by floods has reached 51,000 with the worst-hit area being the eastern state of Pahang, where some 32,000 were forced to flee from their homes.

Selangor, Malaysia's most populous and wealthiest state, was also severely affected with seven deaths. The toll is likely to increase because some people are reported missing.

Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said that a month's rainfall came down in one day in Selangor, adding that tens of thousands of emergency service and military personnel were deployed to aid rescue efforts.

The Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM) said it was concerned that the floods would result in heavy losses for firms in the affected areas. The losses could be in the millions of ringgit and companies are still assessing the damage after the floods subsided.

Dutch chipmaking equipment supplier BE Semiconductor lowered its fourth-quarter revenue outlook on December 20 due to flooding affecting its main production facility in Shah Alam. Malaysia's semiconductor assembly industry is an important part of the global high-tech supply chain and makes up a tenth of global trade in the sector.

Malaysians are now able to go home after most of the rains have ended on December 20. After the water receded, the workers have returned to work and road repair is also underway./.