Four days and counting without power or water at Shah Alam apartments

Residents at the Perdana flats in Section 13, Shah Alam, have been struggling to deal with the aftermath of the devastating floods which hit the neighbourhood after continuous heavy rain on Saturday.

Their clean-up efforts however are hampered by the fact that they have been without electricity supply or water for the past four days.

“We have no food,” foreign worker Masud Alam told MalaysiaNow. “We can only hope for help from outside.”

Masud, who works at the Aeon in Section 14, shared the first floor of one of the flat units with four friends.

When the floods hit, the water level rose to about one metre, submerging the units on the ground floor.

Checks by MalaysiaNow found that Tenaga Nasional had succeeded in restoring power to some of the apartment blocs.

But hundreds of cars, motorcycles and bicycles are sitting stranded in the parking area, and many residents are still sitting in the dark at home.

Sumiati, an Indonesian worker who has been living in Malaysia for nine years with six of her family members, said they have been without electricity and water since the weekend.

“The floods started receding on Sunday but we could not begin cleaning our home as there was no water,” she said.

Sumiati grieves to see their home in shambles and their belongings spoilt by the flood waters.

“My home was always clean and tidy before this,” she told MalaysiaNow. “Now, I cry when I see how things are.”

Help has been coming in from many quarters but some of the contributions like rice and oil cannot yet be of any use as they have no gas or kitchen space to cook.

Now, they are wholly dependent on the food packets given by volunteers and members of the public.

“I’m grateful that Malaysians are so kind-hearted,” Sumiati said. “So much help has been pouring in.”

Section 13 was one of the worst-hit areas in Selangor, which was badly affected by the massive floods.

At the Sri Acapella serviced apartments meanwhile, water is still four metres deep in the basement parking area.

Residents have been trying to pump the water out using several small pumps.

One of them said the lifts remain out of service as well.

For them, and thousands of others affected by the floods in the area, the main concern for the next few days will be how to get basic household necessities.