Residents in Bukit Puan swimming in the waters. Picture: BT/Chua Guan Cheong
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
FOLLOWING yesterday's heavy downpour, the flooding situation in the Belait district worsened while floodwaters in Tutong receded slightly.
According to the Public Works Department (PWD), flood monitoring in Tutong showed that there was a "reduction (in the) flood levels at most areas".
However, the road to Bukit Puan in Belait rose from 0.4 metre on Sunday to 0.5 metre on Monday without rain. With yesterday's thundershowers, a 0.52-metre water level recorded at 3pm rose to 1.3 metres by 6.30pm.
The PWD also disclosed that Seria in the Belait district suffered some flash floods during the heavy downpour and added that the National Disaster Management Centre recorded a flood level of one metre in Sukang, Belait by 3pm and 1.3 metres by 6.30pm.
The record-high flood levels at Sukang were expected to reach areas in Bukit Sawat in 38 hours and areas in Bukit Puan in 48 hours from eight o'clock last night.
The PWD said that "more rain will push floodwaters downstream to Badas and Kuala Balai in three to five days".
Asked why flood waters had receded in Tutong and risen in Belait, Pg Azman Pg Badaruddin, senior executive engineer and head of the Drainage Section at PWD, said it might be due to less rainfall over the interior of the district, although the department did not know for sure as it has yet to install rain gauges in remote areas within the interior.
In the same statement, the Incident Command Post said it expected the Rampayoh padi field to be flooded by late evening yesterday.
The Temburong district experienced heavy downpour at 3pm yesterday but authorities have yet to obtain comprehensive information on the rainfall and flooding situation in thearea.
Entering the heavy monsoon season of December and January, the Sultanate has already experienced a taste of the challenges brought by floods through heavy rainfall and high tide.
Tutong, the country's lowest lying district, has been seeing an influx of floodwaters in many places along the Tutong River since December 2 while the Belait district, specifically in Bukit Puan and Luagan Lalak, saw water rising to at least 0.4 metre, overflowing riverbanks.
On December 1, a PWD station at Kampung Belaban had reported 126.5 millimetres of rainfall, "the highest recorded," for that station. The statement further stated that upstream from the station along the Tutong River and Belait River, the rainfall records were much higher.
Another statement from PWD said water levels are expected to recede within a week if no heavy downpour further swells the rivers.
courtesy of--The Brunei Times
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