Over the weekend, the nation was shocked by the news of the flood in Peninsular Malaysia. During the tough times, people who could help, they help, regardless of who they are.
One of the people who offered a helping hand during the crisis was Dr Ong Kian Ming, the MP for Bangi.
He shared his experience of helping the flood victims in Taman Sri Muda, Shah Alam, which is the worst affected area of the flood, with the entire area submerged up to 8 feet! In order to help the stranded victims, he brought his own kayak and kayak-ed his way in the flood to rescue as many victims as he could.
He stated that he is an experienced kayaker, which explains why he was able to bring his own kayak for the rescue mission. During the mission which lasted for 4 hours, Dr Ong managed to rescue around 40 victims which include the disabled, senior citizens, women, children, and even a furry friend! It took him about 15 trips during the 4-hours rescue mission.
On the other hand, the rest of his team managed to rescue about 20 people.
For the other victims, Dr Ong and his team will provide assistance in cleaning up their residences and providing food to those who are at the temporary flood shelters.
Additionally, 2 of his 3 kayaks were also damaged during the process as they were stuck on sharp fences which were invisible.
“This is one of the reasons why some of the motorboats were damaged and couldn’t go into some of the smaller roads in the taman,” he further explained.
In another Twitter post of his, a few pictures of Dr Ong being pulled in while he sits on his kayak can be seen. He reiterated that the people are giving him a break after he had done most of the rescue jobs, where each trip took about 15 to 20 minutes.
Prior to his mission in Taman Sri Muda, Dr Ong kickstarted his rescue mission in Batu 11, Cheras, another affected area in Kuala Lumpur.
We are certainly grateful to the people who spend their time and risk their lives in helping the victims during this crisis. Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims!
Stay strong, and pray for Malaysia!