State Education Dept, PPD Seek Allocation To Overcome Flood Problem In SMK Lambor Kiri

IPOH, Oct 17 (Bernama) -- The State Education Department (JPN) and the District Education Office (PPD) will apply for emergency allocations for the implementation of immediate mitigation works at the Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Lambor Kiri which was hit by flash floods, recently.

The chairman of the state Education, Higher Education, Youth and Sports Committee, Khairudin Abu Hanipah said the Perak Irrigation and Drainage Department (JPS) had carried out an assessment for repairs and improvement work.

“There are also several long term solutions recomended and will be discussed in a special meeting related to this issue within two weeks. All relevant agencies have gone to the field to inspect all locations and repairs or improvement that need to be done for us to put an end to this flash flood problem,” he said in a statement today.

Khairudin who visited the school involved on Tuesday said that immediate action had been taken by JPS in addition to involving the Works Department (JKR), PPD, District Office and Perak Tengah Land office to identify the cause of the flooding.

He said this included designing several short-term plans to overcome the problem of recurring flooding in the relevant school. 

“The results of the JPS review found that the drainage system in the school was not perfect and was not properly implemented. In fact, the position of the school which was surrounded by oil palm fields resulted in water flowing from the fields into the school because it was in a lower position. 

“Apart from that, the structure of the existing trenching system, which is an earthen ditch type, is not able to accommodate large amounts of rainwater, resulting in the school's internal water flow not being able to exit properly into the waste ditch,” he said

Khairudin, who is also a State Legislative Council (ADUN) member added that the school is also located close to the main canal for Seberang Perak Irrigation, which will result in an increase in water levels when water is distributed to rice fields. 

It is said that previously JPS Perak Tengah had installed two flap gates respectively on Oct 7, 2022 and Aug 25, 2023 in the Parit Buang area to reduce the impact of flooding in the school area.

“Immediate action was also taken on Oct 9 as JPS had installed a portable pump to release water that was trapped in the school area during the flash flood event on Oct 5,” he said. 

-- BERNAMA