BUTTERWORTH, Sept 17 – The floods which hit Penang yesterday were believed to have been caused by heavy rainfall of about 270 millimetres, equal to the amount that normally falls in a month. Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said following the heavy rain which fell on Thursday night, the water level in the Ayer Itam dam rose by 20%. He said the water in the dams rose from 74% to 94%, and this was very surprising because it showed that there was a huge volume of water.
He told this to reporters after attending the Malaysia Day Celebrations at SP Arena in Seberang Jaya here today. He said the state government hoped the federal government’s RM150-million flood mitigation plans would be completed soon to resolve the flood problems in the state. Yesterday, several areas around George Town as well as parts of the mainland, were inundated by floods measuring between 0.2m and 0.3m deep, following heavy rainfall since midnight on Thursday. — Bernama
