ASIR PUTEH: The floods that hit several villages here this week were unexpected, with most residents forced to leave their homes unprepared, many only grabbing their personal belongings and documents.

The deluge, following continuous heavy rain since last Monday, forced the evacuation of more than 100 families to the relief centre (PPS) at SK Changgai, Kelantan, on Wednesday.

A stroke patient, Ab Hadi Kadir, 90, said that in less than an hour, the water at his home rose to 0.3m, and not wanting to take the risk, the family decided to evacuate.

“I thought the flood season was over. That’s why I didn’t make any preparations to deal with the flood. But when I saw the water rising and with me being wheelchair-bound, I immediately got the family to evacuate.

“There was no time to think about anything else, (we) just grabbed a few items of clothing and left,” he told Bernama when met at the PPS here yesterday.

Another resident, Noraini Ismail, 45, of Kampung Gaal Hilir, said she moved to the PPS after seeing the floodwaters rising fast.

“Before leaving the house, I placed some of the electrical appliances and furniture in high places and then only brought along the important documents to the PPS,” she added.

Another flood victim, Norasmira Ahmad, 35, from Kampung Batu Hitam, said the floodwaters rose so fast that by the time she returned home after sending her children to school and buying some foodstuff, the road leading to her house was underwater and no longer passable to light vehicles.

According to the Info Bencana portal of the Social Welfare Department, two PPS centres were opened in Pasir Puteh yesterday and were accommodating 350 victims from 119 families.