MERSING, Jan 29 — Residents of Kampung Baru Jemari, here, were forced to wade in flood waters for up to three kilometres (km) to purchase food supplies today after their main road was submerged last night.

Maszila Edal, 27, said yesterday, the residents were allowed to leave the relief centre at SK Seri Mersing and Politeknik Mersing yesterday after being housed there for five days.

"After leaving the relief centre at midday, the residents began returning to their houses in the village as the authorities reported that it was safe to do so.

"However, heavy rain returned yesterday evening and it only eased this morning," she said when met by Bernama here, today.

Maszila said following the incident, about half the residents decided to wade through the waters, while others got into their own boats or the village headsman's boat to obtain food supplies from a nearby town.

Meanwhile, Maszila’s sister, Fatin Syuhada Edal, 22, and her husband Abbil Haqim, 40, as well as their three-year-old child were forced to sleep in their car along the roadside last night as they were unable to wade through the waters.

"After leaving the relief centre yesterday evening, our family went to look for things in Mersing town first. At night, we decided to head back to the village but we didn’t know that the main road had been cut off by the floods. So we resorted to sleeping in their car while awaiting the flood waters to recede," she said.

Fatin Syuhada said they (residents) would wait for instructions from their village head and the authorities on whether they should move back to the relief centre.

"Actually, only two or three houses remain flooded, but all the residents are facing the problem of getting food supplies due to the road’s inaccessibility," she said.

Meanwhile, a Bernama survey at the location found that the rain began slowing down at 11 am today, however, flood waters on the main road did not show any signs of receding. Residents were still seen wading through the waters to obtain their food supplies. — Bernama