PERMAISURI, Dec 20 — A total of 1,641 flood victims seeking shelter at 15 relief centres in Terengganu had to be moved to other locations after the centres concerned began flooding yesterday.

Terengganu police chief Datuk Rohaimi Md Isa said it involved two relief centres in Kemaman, five each in Besut and Hulu Terengganu, and three in Setiu.

He said the unforeseen circumstance due to worsening floods in the state had made it a little difficult for the authorities and rescue agencies to manage and carry out evacuation missions.

"We hope all the victims can remain patient because the evacuation process will take time. We are trying to do it quickly and safely,” he said after visiting flood victims at SK Mangkuk near here, today.

Rohaimi said apart from a lack of heavy-duty assets, the evacuation process was also facing constraints as there were many places that had never been flooded previously also hit this time.

Therefore, he said the focus would be on critical areas with chronic patients, pregnant mothers and the elderly who need immediate evacuation.

"The flood this time is different because some relief centres have also been submerged. Many areas that have never been flooded before are also affected.

"We have enough strength in terms of rescue personnel from the police, Fire and Rescue Department and the Malaysian Civil Defence Force (MCDF), we just need bigger assets. But yesterday, we got the help of 16 five-tonne trucks from the management of the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) project to overcome this problem,” he said.

In the meantime, he reminded parents to monitor their children and prevent them from playing in the flood water for safety reasons. — Bernama