SHAH ALAM, Sept 2 — Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia) has forecasted continuous heavy rain from mid-November that will lead to major floods at the end of the month.
Berita Harian reported its director-general, Muhammad Helmi Abdullah, as saying the increase in rainfall was due to the ongoing La Nina phenomenon, which is expected to end early next year.
“During this period, the weather throughout the country will be good in the morning. Meanwhile, in the afternoon to early night, thunderstorms will occur more often in the west coast states as well as the rural areas of the peninsula, Sarawak (west and central) and west Sabah.
“The risk for flash floods to occur within this period is high, particularly in low-lying areas on the west coast of the peninsula,” he said.
However, he said what was more worrying was the monsoon surge or the occurrence of low-pressure weather systems in December, which would cause continuous rain and risk of flooding.
“Should the strong monsoon surge occur concurrently with the low-pressure weather systems, there is a high risk for major floods to happen,” he said.
In December last year, several areas in Selangor, especially Hulu Langat and Taman Sri Muda, were severely affected by flooding following unusually heavy rain for several days.
