Storms kill five across Greece, India; 122,000 evacuated in Malaysian floods
by AFP Staff Writers
Athens (AFP) Dec 1, 2024

A storm sweeping through Greece has killed two people on the island of Lemnos, and damaged roads and buildings in Rhodes, authorities said on Sunday.

Storm Bora, which arrived in Greece on Saturday, is forecast to bring heavy snowfall to the north and northwest until Tuesday.

More than 17 centimetres (6.7 inches) of rain fell in 12 hours on Saturday, the Greek weather service said.

Two men died on Lemnos in the Aegean sea on Saturday after the civil protection service issued an emergency alert for torrential rains and strong winds in the northeast, the centre and the region around Athens.

One 57-year-old man died while trying to pull his car out of mud with a tractor, while a 70-year-old fell on his head outside his home.

Floods filled many fields on the island, whose economy relies on farming.

On the island of Rhodes, which has an important tourist industry, the storm damaged roads, houses and commercial buildings overnight on Saturday to Sunday, said regional governor George Hadjimarkos.

He said scores of people had been evacuated. One bridge was swept away while cars were piled on top of each other after being carried by torrents.

Authorities have urged Rhodes residents to remain in their homes and have halted traffic for 24 hours while emergency services are "on maximum alert".

Three killed as Cyclone Fengal pummels India's south
Bengaluru, India (AFP) Dec 1, 2024 - A low-level cyclone that smashed into India's southern coastline killed at least three people but otherwise did not cause widespread damage, officials said.

Cyclone Fengal made landfall late Saturday with sustained winds of 70-80 kilometres an hour (43-50 miles per hour).

Three people were electrocuted as a result of the storm in Chennai, Tamil Nadu state disaster management minister KKSSR Ramachandran told reporters late Saturday.

But damage from the cyclone was otherwise "minimal", he added.

The Times of India newspaper reported the death toll was four, adding that there was "flooding" and trees falling but "not to the extent feared".

Cyclones -- the equivalent of hurricanes in the North Atlantic or typhoons in the northwestern Pacific -- are a regular and deadly menace in the northern Indian Ocean.

While the storm is expected to gradually weaken into a depression later Sunday, India's weather bureau warned of heavy rains across parts of India's south.

It advised a total suspension of fishing operations and also said there was a "moderate to high flash flood risk" in some areas.

Fengal skirted the coast of Sri Lanka earlier this week, killing at least 12 people including six children.

Scientists have warned that storms are becoming more powerful as the world heats up due to climate change driven by burning fossil fuels.

Warmer ocean surfaces release more water vapour, which provides additional energy for storms, strengthening winds.

A warming atmosphere also allows them to hold more water, boosting rainfall.

But better forecasting and more effective evacuation planning have dramatically reduced death tolls.

More than 122,000 people evacuated in Malaysia due to floods
Kuala Lumpur (AFP) Nov 30, 2024 - More than 122,000 people have been forced out of their homes as massive floods caused by relentless rains swept through Malaysia's northern states, disaster management officials said Saturday.

The number surpassed the 118,000 evacuated during one of the country's worst floodings in 2014, and disaster officials feared it could rise further as there was no let-up in torrential downpours.

The death toll remained at four recorded across Kelantan, Terengganu and Sarawak.

Kelantan state bore the brunt of the flooding, accounting for 63 percent of the 122,631 people evacuated, according to data from the National Disaster Management Agency.

Nearly 35,000 people were evacuated in Terengganu, with the rest of the displacements reported from seven other states.

Heavy rains, which began early this week, continued to hammer Pasir Puteh town in Kelantan, where people could be seen walking through streets inundated with hip-deep waters.

"My area has been flooded since Wednesday. The water has already reached my house corridor and is just two inches away from coming inside," Pasir Puteh resident and school janitor Zamrah Majid, 59, told AFP.

"Luckily, I moved my two cars to a higher ground before the water level rose."

She said she allowed her grandchildren to play in the water in front of her house because it was still shallow.

"But if the water gets higher, it would be dangerous, I'm afraid they might get swept away," she added.

"I haven't received any assistance yet, whether it's welfare or other kinds of help."

Muhammad Zulkarnain, 27, who is living with his parents in Pasir Puteh, said they were isolated.

"There's no way in or out of for any vehicles to enter my neighbourhood," he told AFP by phone.

"Of course I'm scared... Luckily we have received some assistance from NGOs, they gave us food supplies like biscuits, instant noodles, and eggs."

The Malaysian Meteorological Department warned that heavy rains will continue until Sunday in Kelantan, Terengganu and Perak.

Floods are an annual phenomenon in the Southeast Asian nation of 34 million people due to the northeast monsoon that brings heavy rain from November to March.

Thousands of emergency services personnel have been deployed in flood-prone states along with rescue boats, four-wheel-drive vehicles and helicopters, said Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who chairs the National Disaster Management Committee.

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