Road looked like 'fast-flowing river': Johor floods

He goes to Johor Baru up to three times a month to shop and dine.

On Monday, Mr Saifudin Sharip, a 42-year-old Singaporean who works in sales, was unprepared for the sight that greeted him and his friend when they arrived at Johor Bahru City Square mall at around 1pm.

He told The New Paper yesterday: "The road near the mall was flooded with murky, brown water.

"I was stuck there. The road looked like a fast-flowing river."

Monday's flash flood in JB occurred after a two-hour downpour. Jalan Wong Ah Fook, which is near the shopping centre and about a 10-minute drive from the Causeway, was one of the worst-hit areas.

South JB police chief Assistant Commissioner Sulaiman Salleh said on Monday that water levels rose to as high as 1.5m, causing the stretch to be inaccessible to vehicles.

He added that 20 cars on the road were stuck in the flood until the water level started to recede at 2.15pm.

BUSINESS AS USUAL

TNP visited the affected area yesterday morning and found that it was business as usual for most of the shops in the area.

The two malls at Jalan Wong Ah Fook - Johor Bahru City Square and Komtar JBCC - were bustling with activity.

Traffic was also smooth-flowing.

Workers at two stores were sweeping muddy water out of their shops.

Chairs and other pieces of furniture had been placed on the common five-foot-way to dry. There were also mud-stained electrical appliances, including a television set, laid out on the ground.

When approached, the workers declined to be interviewed, saying that "there was still a lot of things to do".

A Malaysian administrative worker in a nearby building said that Monday's flood had surprised her.

Identifying herself only as Ms Rashidah, 25, she said: "The water never rises here even when it rains heavily. But I think the flood took place because of the construction work by the roadside."

Officers at the JB Sentral Police Station told TNP that they did not receive any reports about stranded Singapore-registered vehicles.

Mr Saifudin, who had taken a bus to JB, said the floods forced him to abandon his plans to go to another JB shopping centre, KSL City Mall.

He said: "The traffic jam made it impossible to move around. Vehicles were stuck bumper to bumper as they had to be diverted away from the flood.

"From where I was, I saw 10 cars and taxis stuck in the flood waters. I was relieved to see that some passers-by managed to help the motorists to safety and no one was hurt."

This article was first published on November 18, 2015.
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