Flooding hits Penang airport and several villages
Continuous rainfall has not only caused flash floods in several parts of Malaysia’s northern Penang state, but also at the arrival hall of the Penang International Airport.
The hall was flooded at about 9am on Saturday after water started flowing in from taxi lanes outside.
The main entrance at the lower level of the airport was flooded with ankle-deep water.
Three arriving flights between 8am and 8.50am, from Subang in Selangor, from Langkawi island and from Kuala Namu in North Sumatra, had to be diverted to other airports.
This wasn’t the first time that the arrival hall of the airport, located on Penang island, has been flooded.
A video of the latest incident went viral with netizens expressing their disappointment over the latest situation.
In the video, airport staff can be seen clearing up the mess caused by the flash floods.
Rising waters were also seen in the main road leading to the Bayan Lepas industrial area and the airport.
Bayan Lepas state assemblyman Azrul Mahathir Aziz, in a Facebook posting, said villages in his constituency that were affected included Kampung Masjid, Kampung Manggis, Kampung Perlis, Kampung Binjai and Kampung Seronok.
The posting was accompanied by photos of flooded houses.
Netizens also shared photos of the floods.
Malaysia’s monsoon season usually starts around November and ends around February, but there has been a change in weather patterns due to climate change, with persistent rainfall or long droughts seen in several countries around the world.