Cattle rearers hit by floods are at wit’s end

JITRA: A cattle rearer in Kampung Paya Tok Teh here whose cow shed was inundated by floods is praying for the waters to recede.

If this does not happen in the next two days, Che Merah Mt Isa, 49, and her husband Arshad Majid, who have been supplying beef for more than 20 years, say they might not be able to meet the wedding orders they already accepted.

“If the floods do not ease, we will not be able to keep our word,’’ Che Merah said yesterday.

She said 50 cows were to be slaughtered for the weddings.

The flood hit the village early on Thursday, with the waters rising up to 1m at their cow shed.

Che Merah said she and her hus- band had to move 12 cows to a relative’s house.

She said the floods were becoming a big problem, having struck the village twice over the past 45 days.

She said they were also unable to slaughter the cows to supply beef to wet markets.

Shahrom Ali, 60, said her house was affected at 6am on Thursday.

“We packed what we could, but I slipped and hurt my leg while moving out,” she said when met at the Kampung Bata evacuation centre.

As at 4pm yesterday, there were 385 evacuees from 109 families at four relief centres – Kampung Lahar (62 victims); Dewan Kubur Siam (222); Dewan Tokong Cina (50) and Surau Assyakirin, Kepala Batas (51).