Three dead, thousands evacuated as floods hit Malaysia

KUALA LUMPUR - Three children have drowned and about 3,300 people have been displaced after their homes were inundated by floodwaters in northeastern Malaysia, a police spokesman said Monday.

Almost 3,200 people remained in 22 temporary shelters set up in Kelantan state, a state police spokesman told the official Bernama news agency.

He said the evacuees from 970 families were expected to be able to return to their homes in the next few days.

State rescue officers Sunday found the body of a 17-year-old boy who became the latest flood victim after the bodies of an 8-year-old boy and 10-year-old girl were discovered Saturday.

In neighbouring Terengganu, about 100 people remained in evacuation centres, police said.

The meteorological department warned that heavy rains and strong winds were expected to continue along Malaysia’s east coast.

Tens of thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes since November when the annual year-end monsoon rains bring massive floods.

In 2009, the government spent more than 60 million ringgit ($18 million) on flood relief, which included establishing more than 5,000 evacuation centres. Millions more are spent every year to repair infrastructure damage caused by flooding.