WIDOW WITH TWO DISABLED CHILDREN FACES FLOODING TRIAL IN KUCHING

KUCHING, Dec 31 (Bernama) -- Still mourning the loss of her husband in August, Rahimah Sidi, 43, now faces another hardship as floodwaters inundated her home in Kampung Sinar Budi Baru here, a day before the start of 2026.

Rahimah, who has four children, including two sons with disabilities, said she accepted the ordeal as a test of patience when the flood hit early this morning.

She said the family only realised their home was flooded after receiving a call from relatives around 4 am while they were still in her hometown village.

Due to the rapidly rising waters, Rahimah said she was unable to salvage belongings, including medications for her two children with disabilities, Muhammad Rayyan Azmil, 12, and Muhammad Aiman Hamzah Azmil, eight.

“When we arrived, the water had already reached knee level and we could not save anything. Clothes, mattresses and beds were all gone. My house is in a low-lying area with a history of flooding and it happened last year as well,” she told Bernama.

Rahimah and her family are currently sheltering at the temporary relief centre at Dewan R-Piang in Kampung Sinar Budi Baru.

Several areas around Kuching were affected by floods this morning following continuous heavy rain since midnight, with 380 flood victims from 97 families taking shelter in two temporary relief centres as of 4 pm.

Yesterday, the Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia) issued a continuous rain alert at the ‘watch’ level for several areas in Sarawak, including Kuching, Serian, Samarahan, Sri Aman and Betong, effective today until tomorrow.

-- BERNAMA