14 Hours Of Rainfall In Brunei
By Azlan Othman & Asmanuddin PD

Bandar Seri Begawan – The current rainy season has wreaked much havoc to a number of properties in the country, especially during what was the single longest spell of rain the country has seen, between 5pm Sunday and lam yesterday.

The Meteorology Section of the Department of Civil Aviation said the downpour was due to a tropical depression, which is now moving away.

Yesterday morning, RTB crew visited one of the worst hit areas, Kampong Kulapis Bebatik in the Brunei-Muara District, where some houses in lower parts of the village came underwater.

Meanwhile, occupants of a house in Kg Tungku, near the premises of Narcotic Control Bureau, woke up yesterday morning to find their house collapsed, fence torn apart and trees uprooted due to landslides.

The damage was believed to be due to tremendous erosive actions of a huge body of water from heavy downpours the night before. As a result, it weakened the main foundation of the affected structure.

Moreover, the main foundation appeared to have been exposed to the current construction of a better drainage in the area, leaving it vulnerable to climatic destruction.

House owner Hjh Dyg Damit said she found the toilet badly damaged and cracks on the floor yesterday at around 5 am.

She also said contractors were seen carrying out digging works at the drainage near her house a few days before the incident, and heavy downpours had filled the drains with water.

The tragedy yesterday also caused several large trees to tumble, which partially blocked a single carriageway nearby. Consequently, it disrupted the traffic flow of the morning peak hour.

Hjh Dyg Damit, who has been living in the house for 15 years, said this was the first time she had witnessed such disaster.

Fortunately, no one was injured, she added.

Meanwhile, officers from the Public Works Department were seen assessing the situation in the area late yesterday.

Elsewhere, the wet season had caused several landslides, such as the hill near the DST building in Jalan Tungku.

Although temporary measures have been taken, including covering affected surfaces with canvases, the soil is still constantly subjected to erosion due to frequent heavy rainfalls. -- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

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