GEORGE TOWN: Clean up efforts are underway in the northern region following a storm that swept through Perlis, Kedah and Penang last night.
Trees were uprooted, and billboards and electricity poles collapsed, killing one woman and injuring a few others.
In Kedah, state police chief Comm Datuk Zainuddin Yaacob said motorcyclist Marziah Che Omar from Taman Bersatu in Jitra was killed after she was run over by an oncoming vehicle.
She had fallen off from her bike after a zinc roof which blew off hit her, near the Sharifah Fatimah Mosque, around 8.30pm.
Residents in LANGKAWI, PENANG and PERLIS also endured torrid weather last night, which also caused traffic congestion.
Penang executive councillor Phee Boon Poh confirmed that there were a number of people injured by flying debris and fallen trees.
“We are fortunate that the torrid weather only lasted for about 90 minutes, otherwise the extent of damages could have been far worse,“ he said.
Phee’s counterpart Jagdeep Singh Deo, who is in charge of Local Government, said that the state was suffering the effects of Typhoon Lekima which had barrelled towards southern China and the coasts of Taiwan last night.
He said that a total of 128 trees were either uprooted or damaged, while 31 residents in Penang were forced to evacuate after the storm damaged their households.
Tourism Langkawi president Ahmad Pishol Isahak praised the rescue agencies for working tirelessly to clean up the affected areas.
“We were frantic as we didn’t expect the storm’s effects to be severe,“ he said.
Langkawi Businesses Association deputy president Datuk Issac Alexander said that the deployment of rescue personnel was crucial because the island resort is a prime tourist destination.
At the same time, the island resort is currently hosting Unesco inspectors who are there for the revalidation exercise of Langkawi’s status as one of the 142 global geopark global network sites in the world.
Pishol said that the meteorological forecasting department was quick to relay the warning of rough weather but he wished that such alerts can be issued much earlier the next time, especially for the yachting community and the anglers.
